WHEN  MOTHER 
LETS  US  GARDEN 


FRANCES  DUNCAN 


"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US"  SERIES 

Each  volume,  price  75  cents  net  (postage  10  cents  extra) 

When  Mother  Lets  Us  Cut  Out  Pictures.   By  Ida  E.  Boyd. 
"When  Mother  Lets  Us  Keep  Pets.    By  Constance  Johnson. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Garden.    By  Frances  Duncan. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Sew.    By  Virginia  Ralston. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Play.    By  Angela  M.  Keyes. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Help.    By  Constance  Johnson. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Give  a  Party.    By  Elsie  Duncan  Yale. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Cook.    By  Constance  Johnson. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Act.    By  Stella  George  Stern  Perry. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Make  Gifts.    By  Mary  B.  Grubb. 

When   Mother  Lets   Us   Make   Paper-Box  Furniture. 

By  G.  Ellingwood  Rich. 

When  Mother  Lets  Us  Make  Toys.    By  G.  Ellingwood  Rich. 

When  Mother  Lets  Us  Make  Candy.     By  Elizabeth  and 

Louise  Bache. 

When  Mother  Lets  Us  Carpenter.    By  John  D.  Adams. 
When  Mother  Lets  Us  Model.    By  Helen  Mortimer  Adams. 

When   Mother   Lets   Us   Tell  Stories.    By  Enos  B.  Com- 
stock.  % 

When  Mother  Lets  Us  Draw.     By  Emma  R.  Lee  Thayer. 


For  brief  description  of  each  volume,  tee  page  facing  last  page  of  text 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


In  the  Garden 


WHEN   MOTHER 
LETS  US  GARDEN 


A  BOOK  FOR  LITTLE  FOLK  WHO  WANT  TO  MAKE 
GARDENS  AND  DON'T  KNOW  HOW 


By  FRANCES  DUNCAN 

Author  of  "  Mary's  Garden,  and 'how  it  Grew,"  Editor 
Garden  Department  Ladies'  Home  Journal 


ILLUSTRATED  BY  ADA  BUDELL 


NEW  YORK 

MOFFAT,  YARD  AND  COMPANY 
1918 


Copyright,  1909,  by 

MOFFAT.  YARD  AND  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK 

All  Rights  Reserved 


Published  March,  1909 
Second  Printing,  July,  1900 
Third  Printing,  April,  1910 
Fourth  Printing,  June,  1911 
Fifth  Printing,  August,  1918 
Sixth  Printing,  May,  1914 
Seventh  Printing,  May,  1915 
Eighth  Printing,  July,  1916 
Ninth  Printing,  February,  1918 


TO 

ADA  AND  DOROTHEA  YALE 

WHOSE  GARDENS  AT  LEAST  ARE  ENTHUSIASTIC 

THIS  LITTLE  BOOK  IS  HOPEFULLY  DEDICATED 

BY  THEIR  AFFECTIONATE  AUNT 


416106 


CONTENTS 

FLOWER  GARDENING 

PAGE 

How  TO  BEGIN  YOUR  GARDEN 2 

WHAT  PLANTS  EAT 5 

WHEN  TO  PLANT  THINGS 7 

ARRANGING  FLOWER  BEDS 13 

GARDEN  DEFENSES 15 

POPPIES 17 

SWEET  PEAS 19 

ROSES 23 

HARDY  PHLOX  AND  OTHER  PLANTS 25 

CORNFLOWERS 26 

MARIGOLDS 29 

A  NASTURTIUM  HEDGE 30 

NASTURTIUMS 31 

MORNING  GLORIES 35 

PANSY  PLANTS 36 

PANSY  SEED 37 

SNOWDROPS  AND  CROCUSES 40 

TULIPS  AND  OTHER  BULBS 43 

A  SUNFLOWER  HEDGE »     ....  44 

THE  LITTLE  FLOWER-GARDENER'S  TIME-TABLE    ...  45 

MARKET  GARDENING 

BUSH  BEANS 53 

POLE  BEANS  OR  LIMA  BEANS 55 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

PARSLEY,  BEETS,  CARROTS,  TURNIPS,  PARSNIPS    ...  57 

RADISHES I.     ,     .      .  59 

LETTUCE ,'„<     .     .     .     .  61 

PEAS .'.'.••  .  ;   .     .  63 

CORN :  ,     ;   v  '  .     .     .     ...  65 

MUSKMELONS          .        .        .        ;        .        V       •        •        .        •        •        •  67 

GROWING  JACK  O  'LANTERNS    .      .      .     ...     .      .  69 

TOMATOES       .     .     V     .     .     .     ;     .     .     ,     .     .      .  71 

LITTLE  MARKET-GARDENER'S  TIME-TABLE     .     .     .     .  72 

INDOOR  GARDENING 

WHERE  TO  PLANT  THE  WINDOW  GARDEN  .     ...     .  75 

NARCISSUS  IN  STONES  AND  WATER  .......  77 

WATERING  PLANTS  .     v   ',     .     .     .     .     .     .     .     .  78 

HYACINTHS  IN  WATER    ,     ,     .     ••*     .     1     .     .     .     .79 

To  TRAIN  A  GERANIUM  .     i-     .V.     .     .     .     i     .     .  80 

How  TO  GROW  GERANIUMS .     .  81 

POTTING  TULIPS,  DAFFODILS,  HYACINTHS      .     .     .     .  83 

How  TO  TAKE  CARE  OF  A  BOSTON  FERN    .     .     .     .     .85 

MAKING  PLANTS  FROM  LEAVES  .     .     .     *     .     .     .     .  86 

EASTER  LILY  .     .     .     .     .     .     ,     .     ;     .     .     .     .  89 

MAKING  SHRUB-BRANCHES  BLOSSOM    .     .     .    >  >   .     .  90 

GARDEN  PLANTS  FOR  THE  WINDOW  Box   .....  91 

SOME  EASY  GARDEN  BEDS    *     .     ...     *     .     .     .  95 

ANOTHER  GARDEN  BED  .     ,     .     .     .     .     .  '  .     .     .  95 

PLAN  OF  LITTLE  GARDEN     .     .     .     »     .     ....  97 

GARDEN  PLAYHOUSES 99 

GARDEN  FURNITURE  > 100 

GARDEN  BENCHES 101 

GARDEN  TABLES 102 

SWINGING  TABLE                                                            .  103 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

GIVING  THE  PLANTS  Am      .     . 103 

GIVING  HOUSE  PLANTS  A  BATH 104 

INSECTS 105 

How  TO  PREPARE  MEDICINES 109 

THE  TOOL  Box 110 

VERSES  AND  QUOTATIONS 

WHAT  PLANTS  EAT 4 

WHEN  TO  PLANT  THINGS 12 

SHIRLEY  POPPIES 16 

SWEET  PEAS 18 

KOSES 22 

MARIGOLDS 28 

MORNING-GLORIES 34 

SNOWDROPS  AND  CROCUSES 39 

TULIPS 42 

SONG  OF  THE  TOAD 48 

SONG  OF  THE  WATERING-POT 49 

STAY-AT-HOME  PLANTS 50 

BUSH  BEANS 52 

THE  LATE  RISERS 54 

PARSLEY,  BEETS,  ETC 56 

RADISHES 58 

LETTUCE 60 

DROUGHT  WATERING 62 

CORN 64 

GARDEN  WARFARE 68 

THE  WELL-ARMED  GARDENER 70 

PLANTING  SEEDS 74 

GARDEN  ACCESSORIES 93 

THE  MEDICINE  CHEST                                           .     .     .  108 


FLOWER  GARDENING 

Every  path  and  every  plot, 
Every  bush  of  roses, 

Every  blue  forget-me-not 
Where  the  dew  reposes. 


!'  they  cry,  'the  day  is  come 
On  the  smiling  valleys, 
,We  have  beat  the  morning  drum; 
Playmate,  join  your  allies!'  " 

E.  L.  Stevenson. 


2  WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN" 

HOW  TO  BEGIN  YOUR  GARDEN 

The  very  nicest  kind  of  fathers  and  mothers 
will  always  let  you  make  a  garden.  If  there 
isn't  a  small  piece  of  ground  that  you  can  have, 
then  take  a  box ;  if  you  can't  have  a  box  of  earth, 
then  take  a  flower-pot  or  even  a  tin  can ;  or  if  you 
can't  get  the  earth,  then  make  an  aquatic  garden 
with  just  water. 

The  first  thing  is  to  find  a  place  for  your  gar- 
den. Don't  choose  a  place  near  a  tree  or  under  a 
tree,  or  your  flowers  will  find  little  to  eat  because 
the  tree-roots  will  have  been  there  before  them. 
If  you  can,  get  a  place  in  the  full  sunshine.  If 
you  can't  have  sunshine  all  day,  try  for  a  place 
which  has  the  morning  sun,  rather  than  the 
afternoon  sun.  Flowers  are  like  children  and 
like  to  wake  up  early  in  the  morning ;  there  are 
only  a  few  that  prefer  sleeping  late. 

Beside  your  little  garden,  try  to  have  a  place 
for  a  seed-bed ;  this  need  not  be  large  and,  if  pos- 
sible, it  should  have  the  morning  sun,  and  shade 
part  of  the  day.  Here  you  sow  in  narrow  rows 
little  plants  which  later  you  transplant  to  their 
homes  in  your  garden. 

If  you  can  only  have  a  shady  place  for  your 
garden,  you  can  still  have  a  very  pretty  one,  only 
you  must  be  sure  to  plant  the  flowers  that  like  the 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  3 

shade,  such  as  pansies,  forget-me-nots,  lily-of- 
the-valley. 

Gardening  is  a  little  different  from  cooking  in 
that  gardeners  can't  regulate  the  fires,  except 
when  they  have  greenhouses,  and  that  is  an  arti- 
ficial kind ;  for  sure-enough,  out-of-door  gardens 
Mother  Nature  is  the  Cook.  We  can  only  pre- 
pare the  mixture;  we  can  watch  it  and  tend  it 
and  see  that  it  doesn't  burn,  but  we  have  to  wait 
for  her  to  turn  on  enough  heat  from  the  sun  to 
make  the  plants  grow.  We  cannot  even  start 
preparing  a  garden  until  she  unlocks  her  store- 
house and  sends  Jack  Frost  away.  Therefore 
when  we  first  think  of  garden-making  we  must 
see  how  much  heat  Mother  Nature  has  turned  on, 
whether  we  can  start  our  garden  out-doors,  or  if 
we  must  grow  things  in  the  house  and  supply  the 
heat  ourselves. 

As  soon  as  Mother  Nature  has  unlocked  her 
pantry  you  can  begin  your  garden,  that  is,  as 
soon  as  the  ground  is  soft  enough  to  dig.  It  is 
well  to  persuade  a  grown-up  to  do  the  digging. 
This  needs  to  be  done  thoroughly:  The  whole 
future  happiness  of  your  plants  depends  on 
whether  their  food  is  properly  prepared  for  them 
and  whether  the  garden-beds  are  deeply  dug. 
Eighteen  inches  or  two  feet  is  not  a  bit  too  deep. 
The  seed-bed  need  not  be  dug  so  deeply,  it  is  only 
the  babies  that  are  in  here,  they  do  not  eat  so 
much,  nor  do  their  roots  go  so  deep. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


WHAT  PLANTS  EAT 

Water  and  soil  are  the  chief  of  their  diet; 
Manure  makes  it  rich;  if  yon  haven't  this,  buy  it. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


WHAT  PLANTS  EAT 

Soil  is  what  the  plants  eat  and  so  it  makes  a 
good  deal  of  difference  to  a  plant  if  it  finds  any- 
thing good  to  eat  in  its  home  or  not.  It  makes  a 
difference  too  if  the  soil  is  not  broken  into  small 
enough  pieces  for  the  roots  to  eat ;  if  it  is  left  hard 
as  a  board,  the  roots,  not  being  gimlets,  find  it 
hard  to  bore  their  way  through.  So  when  real 
gardeners  are  making  ready  homes  for  the  plants 
they  dig  the  beds  deep  so  that  the  rootsi  can 
easily  push  their  way  down;  they  add  manure 
so  that  the  roots  will  have  something  nice  to  eat ; 
they  make  the  soil  soft  and  fine  so  that  the  roots 
will  find  it  easy  to  take  and  mix  the  manure  in 
very  thoroughly  so  that  the  rich  food  will  not 
give  the  plants  indigestion. 

Poor  soil  is  earth  which  has  so  little  good 
to  eat  in  it  that  most  plants  find  it  hard  to  grow 
in.  There  are  a  few  that  like  this.  On  poor 
soil  you  can  grow  nasturtiums,  California  pop- 
pies, Shirley  poppies  and  mignonette. 

Sandy  soil  is  very  fine  and  crumbly.  If  you 
take  it  up  in  your  hands,  it  slips  through  your 
fingers  as  easily  as  granulated  sugar. 

On  sandy  soil  you  can  grow  dahlias,  poppies, 
cornflowers,  and  roses  (if  manure  is  added). 


6  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GAEDEN 

Clayey  soil  is  stiff  and  sometimes  sticky.  It 
is  often  grayish  or  pale  brown  in  color.  If  you 
squeeze  a  handful  it  will  stick  together  like  wet 
snow  when  you  make  snowballs.  Sometimes  a 
clayey  soil  is  called  " heavy."  In  clayey  soil 
you  can  grow  roses,  dahlias,  zinnias — if  a  little 
manure  be  added.  Eich  soil  is  dark  and  soft- 
looking  when  dug.  A  light  rich  soil  is  a  rich 
soil  that  has  plenty  of  sand  in  it.  A  heavy  rich 
soil  has  not. 

To  make  poor  soil  better,  add  manure  and 
dig  it  in  well.  If  you  haven't  manure,  add  leaf- 
mold.  To  make  sandy  soil  richer,  add  manure  or 
leaf  mold.  To  make  clayey  soil  lighter,  add  sand 
and  manure. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  7, 


WHEN  TO  PLANT  THINGS 

IN  MARCH,  or  as  soon  as  the  garden-beds  are 
ready  you  can  plant  rose-bushes  and  any  kind  of 
bush  that  stays  out  of  doors  all  winter ;  roots  of 
hardy  perennials  which  live  out  of  doors  all  win- 
ter, such  as  hardy  chrysanthemums  and  hardy 
phlox.  These  can  be  bought  or  a  grown-up  gar- 
dener friend  might  give  you  a  root.  But  you 
must  only  plant  now,  things  that  have  been  grow- 
ing out  of  doors,  and  are  used  to  cold  weather. 

TREES  :  If  you  want  to  plant  a  tree,  now  is  the 
time  to  do  it. 

Sweet  peas  and  poppies  you  can  sow  now^  also 
California  poppies  and  pansies. 

In  the  vegetable  garden  you  can  sow  now 
beets,  carrots,  parsley,  parsnips,  peas,  radishes, 
and  turnips. 

IN  APRIL  you  can  sow  coreopsis,  Drum- 
mond's  phlox,  pot  marigolds,  mignonette,  pan- 
sies, candytuft,  cornflower,  cosmos,  China  asters, 
marigolds,  petunias,  pinks  and  morning-glories. 

You  can  plant  roots  of  golden  glow,  holly- 
hocks, phlox,  larkspur,  and  lily-of-the-valley. 

In  the  vegetable  garden  you  can  sow  beets, 
carrots,  cabbage,  lettuce,  peas,  radishes,  pars- 
nips. 


8  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 

IN  MAY  you  can  sow  balsam,  China  asters, 
coreopsis,  cornflowers,  cosmos,  marigolds,  mig- 
nonette, nasturtiums  and  morning-glories. 

[You  can  set  out  pansies,  geraniums  and  other 
plants. 

In  the  kitchen  garden  you  can  sow  beans,  Lima 
beans,  corn,  cucumbers,  melons,  pumpkins, 
squash,  tomatoes. 

IN  JUNE  you  can  sow  balsam,  coreopsis,  mari- 
golds, mignonette,  zinnias. 

You  can  set  out  pansies,  geraniums,  forget- 
me-nots,  and  other  plants. 

In  the  kitchen  garden  sow  bush  beans,  Lima 
beans,  corn,  lettuce,  melons. 

IN  JULY  you  can  sow  hollyhocks,  larkspur, 
sweet  IWilliam,  foxglove,  Canterbury  bells,  and 
pansies  in  the  flower  garden  for  next  year's 
blooming. 

In  the  kitchen  garden,  beans,  beets,  carrots, 
corn,  cucumbers,  turnips. 

IN  AUGUST  you  can  pot  Easter  lilies  for 
Christmas  blooming.  You  can  plant  in  the  gar- 
den bulbs  of  crocus,  snowdrop,  scilla. 

In  the  vegetable  garden  sow  lettuce  and  tur- 
nips for  fall. 

IN  SEPTEMBER  you  can  plant  roots  of  larkspur, 
hollyhocks,  phlox,  peonies.  You  can  plant  cro- 
cus, snowdrop,  scilla  in  the  garden.  Pot  narcis- 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  9 

sus,  hyacinths,  Easter  lilies  for  winter  flowers. 

Make  cuttings  of  geraniums  and  other  plants. 

Start  a  winter  window-box. 

In  the  kitchen  garden  sow  lettuce  and  rad- 
ishes. 

IN  OCTOBER  you  can  plant  bulbs  in  the  ground 
— tulips,  hyacinths,  crocus  and  others.  Plant 
roots  of  hollyhocks,  larkspur  and  other  hardy 
plants. 

Tou  can  pot  Easter  lilies,  hyacinths,  daffodils, 
jonquils,  narcissus,  tulips  for  indoor  blooming. 

You  can  take  up  from  your  mother's  garden, 
asters,  stocks,  sweet  alyssum,  tobacco  plant,  to 
bloom  indoors. 

IN  NOVEMBER  you  can  plant  tulips,  narcissus, 
hyacinths,  lily-of-the-valley  in  the  ground  as 
long  as  it  isn't  frozen. 

Pot  Easter  lilies  for  bloom  at  Easter,  hya- 
cinths, daffodils,  jonquils,  narcissus,  tulips. 

Plant  hyacinths  and  narcissi  in  water. 

Make  a  window  garden. 

Make  cuttings  of  any  plants  you  can  get. 

IN  DECEMBER  you  can  start  Eoman  hyacinths, 
paper-white  narcissus,  Due  van  Thol  tulips. 

Bring  up  bulbs  you  potted  in  October. 

IN  JANUARY  you  can  grow  narcissus  and  Eo- 
man hyacinths  and  Chinese  lilies  in  stones  and 
water. 


10 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  TJS  GARDEN 


Start  baby  shrubs  from  cuttings. 

IN  FEBRUARY  you  can  grow  narcissus  in  stones 
and  water. 

Bring  up  the  bulbs  you  potted  in  October. 

For  the  kitchen  garden  you  can  start  tomato 
plants  in  tin  cans  or  anything  handy. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GAKDEN 


11 


12  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


"A  root  is  a  group  of  growing  fibres  which  taste 
and  suck  what  is  good  for  a  plant  out  of  the  ground, 
and  by  their  united  strength  hold  it  in  place.  The 
thick  limbs  of  roots  do  not  feed,  but  only  the  fine 
ends  of  them,  which  are  something  between  tongues 
and  sponges,  and  while  they  absorb  moisture  read- 
ily, are  yet  as  particular  about  getting  what  they 
think  nice  to  eat  as  any  dainty  little  boy  or  girl; 
looking  for  it  everywhere,  and  turning  angry  or 
sulky  if  they  don't  get  it."  — John  Ruskin. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


13 


ARRANGING  FLOWER  BEDS 

WHen  your  flower-bed  is  against  a  wall  or  a 
fence,  you  must  be  sure  to  put  the  tallest  plants 
at  the  back — because  it  is  easy  enough  for  these 
to  look  over  the  heads  of  the  shorter  ones,  but  if 
instead  you  put  the  little  ones  at  the  back,  they 
can't  see  anything,  nor  get  any  air  or  sunshine, 
for  the  tall  plants  take  it  all. 

So  here  are  the  flowers,  placed  according  to 
size,  like  the  big  bear,  the  middle-sized  bear,  and 
the  little  bear  in  the  fairy  story. 

These  are  for  beds  in  full  sunshine. 


TALL  FLOWERS 

Cosmos 
Hollyhocks 
Sunflowers 
Tobacco  Plant 
Sweet  Peas 
Larkspur 
Morning  Glory 
Tall  Nasturtiums 


MIDDLE-SIZED 

Marigolds 

Chrysanthemums 

Cornflowers 

Coreopsis 

Zinnias 

Poppies 

Phlox 

Petunias 


LITTLE  FLOWERS 

Dwarf  Nasturtiums 

Pot  Marigolds 

Candytuft 

California  Poppies 

Miniature  Marigolds 

Pansies 

Drummond's  Phlox 

Zinnia  "  Red  Riding  Hood 

Mignonette 

Portulaca 


If  the  garden  is  a  little  shady,  these  are  the 
flowers  you  can  plant. 


TALL  FLOWERS 

Tobacco  Plant 
Hardy  jPhlox 
Foxglove 
Larkspur 


MIDDLE-SIZED 

Coreopsis 

Petunia 

Salvia 


LITTLE  FLOWERS 

California  Poppy 
Pansies 
iForget-me-nots 
Mignonette 
Sweet  Alyssum 


75 


If  the  garden  is  Tory  shady. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GABDEN  15 


GAB DUN  DEFENSES 

It  is  usually  pleasanter  to  have  your  garden 
screened  off  from  grown-up  people  who  may  not 
appreciate  it. 

Here  are  plants  which  will  make  a  screen  for 
you  six  or  eight  feet  high: 

Giant  Russian  sunflower. 

Castor-oil  bean. 

Early  May  is  the  time  to  sow  the  seeds. 

Make  the  bed  ready  and  plant  the  seed  as  you 
plant  your  cornflowers,  except  that  for  a  screen, 
it  should  be  sown  in  a  row. 

Cosmos  would  be  tall  enough  to  plant  for  a 
screen  but  it  is  too  easily  hurt  by  the  wind  and 
likes  to  have  a  fence  to  lean  against. 

If  you  do  not  need  to  have  your  garden  wall 
so  high,  then  you  might  plant  a  hedge  by  way  of 
breastworks — this  might  be  defense  enough. 


16  .WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


SHIRLEY  POPPIES 

"Take  a  poppy  seed.  .  .  .  The  genie  in  the 
Arabian  Tale  is  not  half  so  astonishing.  In  this 
tiny  casket  lie  folded  roots,  stalks,  leaves,  buds, 
flowers,  seed-vessels, — surpassing  color  and  beauti- 
ful form,  all  that  goes  to  make  up  a  plant  which  ia 
as  gigantic  in  proportion  to  the  bounds  which  con- 
fine it  as  the  oak  is  to  the  acorn." 

— Celia  Thaxter. 


LWHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  17 


POPPIES 

"Choose  a  place  which  Has  the  sun  all  "day. 
Make  the  ground  very  smooth  and  fine,  water  it 
with  fine  spray.  Then  sprinkle  the  seed  thinly 
and  do  not  cover,  press  it  down  with  the  flat  of 
your  hand  or  with  a  board.  Then,  if  you  have 
them,  strew  lawn  grass  clippings  over  the  bed  to 
prevent  the  tiny  seed  from  drying  out.  iWhen 
the  little  plants  are  up,  lift  off  the  grass  clip- 
pings carefully,  pull  up  some  of  the  baby  pop- 
pies so  that  those  you  leave  will  have  room 
enough. 

rWhen  the  poppies  are  clone  flowering,  you  can 
pull  them  up  and  plant  dahlias  or  set  out  plants 
from  your  seed-bed.  •* 

In  just  the  same  way  you  can  plant  California 
poppies,  only  these  do  not  need  the  sun  all  day. 


18  .WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN. 


SWEET  PEAS 

Here  are  sweet  peas  on  tiptoe  for  a  flight, 
With  wings  of  gentle  flush  overspread  with  white 
And  taper  fingers  catching  at  all  things 
To  bind  them  all  about  with  tiny  rings. 

John  Keats. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  19 


SWEET  PEAS 

Sweet  peas  are  not  hard  to  grow,  but  they  are 
very  particular  about  a  few  things.  This  is  the 
way  to  grow  extra  fine  sweet  peas : 

Dig  a  trench  two  feet  deep  and  a  foot  and  a 
half  wide.  Pill  in  with  rich,  well-worked  soil 
until  your  trench  is  only  one  foot  deep.  Next 
put  in  a  layer  of  sheep  manure  two  inches  deep. 
If  you  can't  get  this,  use  old  cow  manure.  Then 
two  inches  of  soil,  then  sprinkle  wood  ashes,  then 
put  another  layer  of  soil.  This  is  a  queer  kind 
of  layer  cake,  but  the  sweet  peas  like  it.  Then 
you  will  have  a  trench  six  inches  deep.  Take  a 
string  and  divide  lengthwise  into  three  parts  so 
that  each  will  be  about  six  inches  wide.  The 
middle  division  is  for  brush.  On  the  space  each 
side,  sow  the  seed — sprinkle  it  thinly  over  the 
whole  six  inches.  Don't  sow  it  in  a  narrow  row. 
Then  cover  the  seed  with  one  inch  of  soil  and 
press  down.  After  the  little  plants  come  up,  fill 
in  the  trench  until  it  is  level  with  the  ground. 

If  you  like,  you  can  plant  sweet  peas  just  as 
you  plant  garden  peas,  but  this  way,  although  it 
is  a  little  more  trouble,  is  the  way  to  have  extra 
fine  flowers. 

The  worst  enemy  you  will  liave  to  watch  for,  is 


20  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 

the  cutworm.  You  will  find  him  a  half  inch 
below  the  surface  of  the  ground  hard  at  work 
cutting  the  stalks  off. 

Sweet  peas  like  to  be  kept  moist.  It  is  a  good 
thing  to  spread  lawn  grass  clippings  over  their 
roots. 

Here  are  some  of  the  best  kinds : 

White,  Dorothy  Eckford. 
Pale-yellow,  Mrs.  E.  Kenyon. 
Scarlet,  Queen  Alexandra. 
Orange-pink,  Miss  Wilmot. 
Soft  pink,  Gladys  Unwin. 
Hose,  Prince  of  Wales. 
Lavender-blue,  Lady  Grisel  Hamilton. 
Dark  Blue,  Navy  Blue  or  Black  Knight. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  21 


22  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 

ROSES 

The  lily  Jias  an  air, 

And  the  snowdrop  a  grace, 
And  the  sweet  pea  a  way 

And  the  heart 's-ease  a  face, — 
Yet  there's  nothing  like  the  rose 

"When  she  blows. 

Christina  Rossetti. 


tack  tk 


o&e>     So 


[WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  23 

ROSES 

If  your  mother  brings  home  a  rose-plant  from 
the  Orphan  Asylum  of  a  bargain-counter,  re- 
member to  thank  her  for  her  kind  intentions  and 
treat  the  humiliated  plant  in  this  way.  First, 
look  carefully  at  the  roots.  It  may  be  broken 
in  root  as  well  as  in  spirit.  With  a  sharp  knife 
cut  off  any  that  are  bruised  or  broken.  Then 
set  the  plant  in  a  pail  of  tepid  water,  while  you 
are  making  ready  a  place  for  it — the  roots  are 
probably  dry.  Dig  the  hole  deep  and  be  sure  you 
get  it  wide  enough  so  that  the  roots  will  be  com- 
fortable. Put  some  well-rotted  manure  in  the 
bottom,  then  some  soil.  Now  you  are  ready  for 
the  plant. 

Cut  it  back  until  it  looks  like  illustration  on 
opposite  page.  Be  sure  that  the  bud  is  two 
inches  below  the  surface  of  the  soil.  Hold  the 
rose-bush  in  your  left  hand,  push  the  soil  down 
around  it  with  your  right,  work  it  in  among  the 
roots  with  your  fingers,  being  careful  not  to  hurt 
them.  When  the  hole  is  half  full,  fill  it  up  with 
water.  Let  this  settle,  then  fill  it  again  and  let 
it  settle  again,  then  put  in  the  rest  of  the  soil. 
Press  it  down  well  and  your  rose  is  planted. 
This  is  the  way  to  plant  any  shrub  or  bush  but 
other  shrubs  don't  need  the  tops  cut  off  them. 


,WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


Eoses  have  a  great  many  troubles.  One  of  the 
best  ways  to  keep  them  safe  from  insects  is  to 
spray  the  leaves  very  often  with  water  and  soap 
and  water.  Insects,  like  untidy  children,  prefer 
keeping  away  from  soap  and  water  but  the  roses 
like  it. 

To  spray  the  roses  use  a  brass  syringe.  This 
doesn't  cost  very  much  and  has  a  great  many  di- 
verting uses. 

Some  of  the  easiest  roses  to  grow  are  these: 


CLIMBING  ROSES. 
Crimson  Rambler. 
Dawson. 
Keine  Marie  Henriette. 


BUSH  ROSES 

Kaiserin  Augusta  Victoria. 
Gruss  an  Teplitz. 
Paul  Neyron. 
Magna  Charta. 
Prince  Camille  de  Rohan. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  25 


HABDY  PHLOX  AND  OTHER  PLANTS 

As  soon  as  the  ground  can  be  dug,  there  are 
lots  of  plants  you  can  set  out. 

If  an  older  gardener  friend  has  promised  you 
some  of  his  hardy  perennials,  now  is  the  time  to 
remind  him  tactfully  of  his  promise.  Clumps 
of  hardy  phlox,  clove-pinks,  hardy  chrysanthe- 
mums, Japanese  anemone — all  of  these  he  can 
take  up,  and  divide  now  and  give  you  some. 

If  you  like,  you  can  buy  young  plants  of  holly- 
hocks and  larkspurs  and  Canterbury  bells  and 
set  them  out  now.  You  plant  these  just  as  you 
planted  roses  except  that  there  isn't  any  "bud" 
or  graft  to  look  out  for.  The  plants  are  set  just 
as  deep  in  the  ground  as  they  were  before. 

The  best  time  to  plant  things  that  bloom  in  the 
late  summer  or  fall,  is  in  the  spring,  for,  since 
this  isn't  their  busy  season,  they  have  now  time 
to  arrange  their  roots  and  lay  in  plenty  of  pro- 
visions ;  but  if  you  want  to  save  money  and  aren't 
in  a  hurry,  wait  until  August  and  sow  the  seed 
for  next  year. 


26  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


CORNFLOWERS 

Have  the  soil  fine  and  light  and  choose  a  sunny 
place  in  the  garden,  just  where  you  want  the 
plants  to  grow.  The  cornflower  seeds  are  like 
tiny  silvery  shuttlecocks  weighted  so  that  the 
heads  sink  down.  Sprinkle  the  seeds,  cover  them 
with  the  soil  and  then,  water  with  a  fine  spray. 
.When  the  little  seedlings  are  up,  they  must  be 
thinned  or  they  will  all  fare  like  the  children  of 
the  Old  Woman  who  lived  in  a  Shoe,  and  have 
scanty  suppers.  Pull  out  the  crowding  plants 
until  those  you  leave  will  stand  two  or  three 
inches  apart.  This  will  give  the  baby  corn- 
flowers enough  to  eat  until  they  get  to  be  four 
or  five  inches  high,  then  you  must  thin  them 
again.  Cornflowers  are  hard  to  transplant,  but 
it  can  be  done,  and  it  is  kinder  to  give  the  un- 
wanted little  cornflowers  at  least  a  chance  of  life. 
Then  one  doesn't  feel  quite  so  much  as  if  one 
were  abandoning  a  helpless  infant,  like  the  luck- 
less nobleman  of  the  Winter's  Tale.  When  the 
plants  are  about  eight  inches  tall,  pinch  off  the 
top  to  make  it  bushy  and  branch.  This,  like  thin- 
ning, requires  a  great  deal  of  strength  of  char- 
acter. 

In  just  the  same  way,  you  can  plant 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GAKDEN 


27 


Candytuft. 
California  poppy. 
Sweet  alyssum. 
Coreopsis. 
Japan  pink. 
Portulaca. 


Mignonette. 
Petunia. 
Morning-glory. 
China  asters. 
Sunflowers. 


28  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


MARIGOLDS 

"The  first  small  bed  at  the  lighthouse  island  con- 
tained only  marigolds,  pot  marigolds,  fire-colored 
blossoms  which  were  the  joy  of  my  heart  as  the  de- 
light of  my  eyes.  .  .  .  When  I  planted  the  dry, 
brown  seeds  I  noticed  how  they  were  shaped  like 
crescents,  with  a  fine  line  of  ornamental  dots,  a 
'beading'  along  the  whole  length  of  the  centre,  and 
from  the  crescent  sprang  the  marigold  plant,  each 
of  whose  flowers  was  like 

"A  mimic  sun 
[With  ray-like  florets  round  a  disk-like  face." 

In  my  childish  mind  I  pondered  much  on  this  fact  of 
the  crescent  growing  into  the  full-rayed  orb." 

— Celia  Thaxter. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  29 


MARIGOLDS 

Sow  the  seed  in  narrow  rows  in  the  seed-bed. 
Just  cover  the  little  seeds  with  soil,  press  it  down 
with  the  flat  of  your  hand,  then  water  and  keep 
the  ground  moist  until  the  little  plants  come  up. 
When  two  or  three  leaves  have  formed,  with  a 
flat  stick  or  a  broad-bladed  jackknife  pry  out 
some  of  the  plants,  leaving  others,  so  that  those 
you  leave  in  the  rows  will  stand  three  inches 
apart.  Press  down  the  soil  well  and  set  out 
somewhere  else  or  give  away  the  little  plants  you 
have  taken  up.  When  the  young  marigolds  are 
six  inches  high,  dig  them  up  and  set  them  out  in 
your  garden,  wherever  they  are  to  stay. 

In  the  same  way  you  can  plant 

Drummond  phlox  Balsam 

Tobacco  plant  Cosmos 

Zinnias  China  asters 

In  the  garden,  these  should  stand  one  foot 
apart,  except  Tobacco  Plant  which  needs  two 
feet  and  Cosmos  which  should  have  four  feet 
of  garden-room. 


30  3THEK  MOTHER  LETS   VS  GABDEX 


Candytuft  and  mignonette 
Don't  transplant,  or  you'll  regret; 
Morning-glory  and  nasturtium 
Hold  transplanting  in  aversion; 
All  sweet  peas  and  poppies  too 
Are  of  this  home-loving  crew; 
Cornflower  and  Japan  pink, 
Coreopsis,  too,  I  think, 
Petunia  and  sweet  alyssum, 
Moved  may  die,  and  then  you'll  miss 


WHEN  MOTHEE  LETS  1^8  GAKDEN  31 


KAfnnmro 

It  agrees  with  nasturtiums  to  be  poor.  Even 
with  a  soil  that  other  plants  wouldn't  think  any- 
thing extra  in  the  way  of  diet,  they  quit  work, 
don't  blossom  and  just  "run  to  leaves."  It  al- 
most seems  as  if  the  poorer  food  they  had,  the 
happier  they  are.  Therefore  if  you  have  only 
poor  soil  for  your  garden,  plant  nasturtiums  and 
lots  of  them  and  perhaps  California  poppies  and 
mignonette  and  you  will  have  a  gorgeous  mass 
of  color.  If  you  want  to  cover  a  high  board. 
fence  with  nasturtiums,  first  nail  an  inch  wide 
strip  of  board  along  the  top  and  another  along 
the  bottom  of  the  fence  and  on  this  tack  chicken- 
wire.  Kasturtiums  are  not  as  expert  climbers 
as  some  vines  and  can't  hold  on  to  string  very 
welL  They  like  lots  of  sunshine ;  if  the  flowers 
ever  find  it  too  hot,  they  can  easily  put  up  a  few 
more  of  their  little  Japanese  umbrellas  of  leares 
to  shelter  themselves  under. 

Don't  plant  them  before  May — the  15th  is  time 
enough- 
Poke  little  holes  in  the  ground  three  inches 
deep  and  drop  a  seed  in  each  one.  Cover  up, 
press  down  and  water.  After  the  seedlings  are 
up,  puH  out  some  until  those  you  leave  stand  six 
inches  apart 


32  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GABDEN 

These  are  some  of  the  best  kinds  .• 

Dwarf  Nasturtiums, 

Aurora,  King  of  Tom  Thumbs,  Ruby  King. 

(These  are  the  kind  to  plant  in  garden-beds.) 
Tall  Nasturtiums, 

Jupiter,  Sunlight,  Vesuvius. 

(These  are  the  kind  to  climb  on  a  porch  or  against  a 
fence.) 
Lobb's  Nasturtiums, 

Asa  Gray  and  Lucifer. 

(These  are  the  best  for  porch  boxes  and  window  boxes.) 


A  NASTURTIUM  HEDGE 

The  way  to  make  this  is  to  set  brush  in  a  row, 
just  as  you  set  it  for  sweet  peas.  On  the  sunny 
side  of  the  brush,  plant  tall  nasturtiums  and 
they  will  climb  on  the  brush  with  pleasure. 


WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


34  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


MORNING-GLORIES 

"The  first  instinct  of  the  stems — the  instinct  of 
seeking  the  light,  as  of  the  root  to  seek  darkness — 
what  words  can  speak  the  wonder  of  it!"  If  "the 
seed  falls  in  the  ground  with  the  springing  germs  of 
it  downwards,  with  heavenly  cunning  the  taught  stem 
curls  around  and  seeks  the  never  seen  light. ' ' 

— Ruskin. 


.WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  35 


MORNING-GLORIES 

Wait  until  nearly  May  before  planting  these. 
They  are  all  lovely,  the  Japanese  kinds  are  the 
showiest.  Choose  a  place  which  has  full  morn- 
ing sun.  Have  the  bed  nicely  dug  and  raked 
smooth. 

If  you  plant  the  Japanese  morning-glories,  it 
is  better  to  soak  the  seed  for  two  hours  in  warm 
water  or  else  you  can  take  a  nail  file  and  file  a 
notch  in  each  seed.  The  shells  are  very  hard  and 
unless  you  do  this  the  leaves  have  to  use  up  a 
great  deal  of  muscle  in  pushing  out. 

Poke  little  holes  about  one-half  inch  deep,  drop 
a  seed  in  each  one,  cover  with  soil,  water  well,  and 
when  the  young  plants  come  up  pull  out  some 
just  as  you  did  with  the  poppies,  until  those  you 
leave  stand  six  inches  apart. 

Morning-glories  will  climb  on  wire  or  you  can 
stretch  string  for  them. 


36  WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


PANSY  PLANTS 

The  easiest  way  to  grow  pansies  is  to  buy  the 
plants  in  April  or  May  or  June  and  set  them  out 
in  your  garden.  If  the  soil  is  quite  rich  they 
will  grow  well  in  a  shady  place,  or  you  can  plant 
them  in  the  full  sunshine. 

Take  your  trowel  and  watering-pot  out  to  the 
garden  and  then  carry  the  box  or  basket  with 
pansies  out  to  the  bed  in  which  they  are  to  go. 
Break  the  basket  or  take  the  little  plants  care- 
fully out,  for  the  soil  about  the  roots  must  be  dis- 
turbed as  little  as  possible.  Separate  the  young 
plants.  Dig  a  hole  with  your  trowel.  Take  a 
little  plant  in  your  left  hand  and  hold  it  in  place. 
Fill  in  the  soil  about  it  with  your  right  hand, 
just  as  you  planted  the  rose-bushes. 

The  little  pansies  should  be  set  about  a  foot 
apart.  You  can  make  a  bed  of  them,  or  use 
them  for  an  edging.  Cut  off  all  the  flowers  but 
you  needn't  cut  off  the  buds. 

In  just  the  same  way  you  set  out  forget-me- 
nots,  geraniums,  ageratum, — any  of  the  plants  in 
pots  or  boxes  which  you  buy  in  the  spring  to 
plant  in  your  garden. 


.WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  37 


PANSY  SEED 

In  March  or  early  April — as  soon  as  you  can, 
sow  the  seed  in  a  row  in  the  seed-bed,  cover  it  up 
about  a  quarter  of  an  inch,  press  down  and  water 
well. 

When  the  little  pansies  are  up,  they  must  be 
transplanted,  and  when  they  grow  big  again  so 
that  they  touch  each  other,  they  must  be  moved 
again,  but  the  next  moving-time  should  be  to  the 
beds  in  the  garden  where  they  are  to  grow. 

Pansies  have  a  great  many  pretty  names — 
' ' Heart 's-ease, ' '  "That 's-f or-thoughts " ;  the  very 
small  ones  are  called  "  Johnny- jump-ups"  and 
the  Germans  call  the  pansy  " little  step-mother" 
because  the  three  big  petals  are  like  its  own  chil- 
dren, while  the  two  little  petals  are  the  step-chil- 
dren which  it  crowds  out.  But  for  all  their 
pretty  names,  they  are  like  the  people  who  live 
in  hotels  and  don't  mind  any;  amount  of  moving 
about. 

Another  time  to  plant  pansy-seed  is  in  July 
or  early  August.  Plant  it  in  just  the  same  way, 
only  in  November  cover  the  little  plants  with 
manure  and  straw — what  is  called  "  stable-lit- 
ter," to  keep  them  warm  for  the  winter. 

[When  you  take  this  off  in  March  you  may  find 


38 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


the  little  pansies  blooming — sometimes  under  the 
snow. 

In  July  or  early  August,  just  as  you  planted 
the  pansies,  you  can  sow  seeds  of  sweet  William, 
hollyhocks,  larkspur,  Canterbury  bells,  forget- 
me-nots.  These  will  not  bloom  until  next  year 
but  by  October  you  will  have  nice  young  plants 
with  which  you  can  supply  your  long-suffering 
parents. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  39 


SNOWDROPS  AND  CROCUSES 

"I  know  the  song  that  the  bluebird  is  singing 
Out  in  the  apple  tree  where  he  is  swinging: 
.......••• 

"Dear  little  blossoms  down  under  the  snow, 
You  must  be  weary  of  winter,  I  know; 
Hark  while  I  sing  you  a  message  of  cheer: 
Summer  is  coming.    And  springtime  is  here. 

Little  white  snowdrop !  I  pray  you  arise !  . 
Bright  yellow  crocus !  Come,  open  your  eyes ; 
Sweet  little  violets,  hid  from  the  cold, 
Put  on  your  mantles  of  purple  and  gold ; 
Daffodils!  Daffodils!  say,  do  you  hear? — 
Summer  is  coming !  and  springtime  is  here ! ' ' 
Emily  Huntington  Miller. 


40  tWHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 

SNOWDROPS  AND  CEOCUSES 

The  best  time  to  plant  these  is  in  early  Sep- 
tember; the  best  place  to  plant  them  is  in  the 
grass,  putting  each  bulb  in  a  hole  in  the  turf,  like 
Mr.  Stevenson  planted  his  leaden  soldier,*  only 
when  the  springtime  comes,  the  crocuses  and 
snowdrops  will  come  out  themselves  as  the  sol- 
dier couldn't. 

Don't  plant  them  this  way : 


as  if  they  marked  the  corners  of  squares  in  a 
checkerboard,  but  plant  so  that  they  will  come 
up  in  patches,  like  the  bluets  in  the  pasture  grass. 
One  way  is  to  take  up  an  irregularly-shaped  piece 
of  sod,1"  dig  the  soil  underneath  with  a  trowel, 
make  it  level  and  see  that  it  is  three  inches  be- 

*  In  the  turf  a  hole  I  found 
And  hid  a  soldier  underground. 

•  •  :"-!*    •  .»•'-.'  -*.     .  •  •  • 

Under  grass  alone  he  lies, 
Looking  up  with  leaden  eyes, 
Scarlet  coat  and  pointed  gun, 
To  the  stars  and  to  the  sun. 

f  For  this  it  is  best  to  have  the  permission  of  a  parent  or  guardian 
of  the  turf. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  41 

low  the  surface  of  the  ground ;  on  this  set  the  lit- 
tle bulbs,  their  noses  pointing  up  like  the  musket 
of  the  lead  soldier;  they  should  be  about  four 
inches  apart.  Fill  in  about  them  with  soil,  then 
carefully  lay  the  sod  back  again,  just  as  it  was 
before — and  you  will  have  a  fine  surprise  for  the 
dandelions — if  they  wake  up  in  time  to  see  it. 

The  other  way  is  to  poke  a  little  hole  in  the 
grass  four  inches  deep  and  in  this  set  the  crocus- 
bulb. 

This  is  the  way  you  plant 

Scilla  Siberica,  a  darling  little  flower  whose 
small,  deep  blue  bells  are  the  coloi*  of  the  fringed 
gentian. 

Crocuses :  white,  yellow  and  blue. 

Snowdrops:  Get  the  common  snowdrop — no 
one  wants  giant  snowdrops  any  more  than  one 
wants  giant  babies. 

Chiondoxa  (glory  of  the  snow)  flowers  a  little 
like  an  anemone,  of  a  pale  Delft  blue. 

Spring  snowflake. 

All  of  these  flower  very  early,  before  the  grass 
has  begun  to  get  green.  If  you  can  keep  the 
grown-ups  from  having  the  lawn  mowed  until  the 
leaves  of  your  bulbs  begin  to  fade,  they  will  blos- 
som year  after  year.  If  you  can 't  they  won 't. 


42  WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GAKDEN 


TULIPS 


"  Dance,  yellows,  whites  and  reds, 
Lead  your  gay  orgy,  leaves,  stalks,  heads 
Astir  with  the  wind  in  the  tulip  beds." 

Robert  Browning. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEH,  '43 


TULIPS  AND  OTHER  BULBS 

Unless  in  the  autumn,  some  one  gives  you  the 
bulbs,  you  won't  be  likely  to  have  a  spring  gar- 
den. October  to  April  is  such  a  long  time  to 
wait !  But  you  might  forget  the  bulbs  and  have 
them  for  a  surprise. 

If  you  want  to  plant  a  solid  bed  of  bulbs  then 
take  off  the  soil  until  the  bed  is  level  and  four 
inches  below  the  surface  set  the  bulbs  down  care- 
fully, each  on  a  little  cushion  of  sand,  their  noses 
pointing  upward.  Fill  in  around  them  with  soil, 
press  it  down  and  the  work  is  done.  In  this  way 
you  can  plant  hyacinths,  tulips,  etc. 

If  you  are  planting  them  in  groups  in  your  gar- 
den or  making  a  row  along  the  edge  of  the  bed, 
then  make  a  hole  six  inches  deep,  set  the  bulb  in 
this  and  fill  it  up. 

When  late  November  comes,  give  your  bulb  bed 
a  covering  of  dead  leaves. 

In  just  the  same  way,  you  can  plant 

Daffodils.  Hyacinths. 

Jonquils.  Poet's  narcissus. 


44  .WHEN  MOTHEB  LETS  US  GARDEN 


A  SUNFLOWER  HEDGE 

Get  a  package  of  miniature  sunflowers. 
Their  baptismal  name,  which  you  will  have  to 
call  them  if  you  want  to  be  sure  to  get  the  right 
thing,  is  Helianthus  cucumerifolius.  Early  May 
is  the  time  to  sow  the  seed ;  sow  it  thickly  in  a 
row,  just  where  you  want  the  hedge  to  be,  and  by 
July  you  will  have  a  hedge  four  feet  high,  cov- 
ered with  yellow  flowers.  Cut  the  flowers  all 
you  like  and  the  sunflowers  will  bloom  finely. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  45 


THE  LITTLE  FLOWER-GARDENER'S  TIME-TABLE 

The  very  best  clock:  to  set  your  garden-watch 
by,  is  some  old  gardener  in  your  neighborhood 
who  always  has  plenty  of  lovely  flowers.  Make 
friends  with  him  if  you  can.  If  you  can't,  hang 
over  his  fence  and  watch  him.  When  you  see 
him  setting  out  plants  from  his  hot-beds,  then 
you  will  know  that  it  is  warm  enough  to  sow  nas- 
turtiums or  plant  corn  or  anything  that  is 
marked  in  catalogues  " tender  annual." 

Old  gardeners  sometimes  seem  cross  because 
they  make  the  mistake  of  thinking  that  the  boys 
or  girls  who  hang  over  their  fence  and  look  at 
their  flowers,  are  the  fierce  creatures  who  step  on 
the  baby  plants  in  their  flower-beds  and  tear 
branches  off  their  shrubs,  when  it  is  probably  an 
ignorant  grown-up  who  has  done  the  mischief. 
If  a  gardener  knows  that  you  really  love  the 
plants  and  want  to  learn  how  to  make  them  grow, 
h£  will  usually  be  very  glad  to  tell  you  if  it  is 
warm  enough  to  plant  your  morning-glories. 

This  time-table  is  for  gardens  in  the  latitude 
of  New  York.  If  you  are  farther  south,  then 
take  your  geography  and  count  how  many  hun- 
dred miles  south  of  New  York  you  are  and  sub- 
tract six  days  for  every  hundred  miles.  If  you 


46 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


are  farther  north,  add  six  days.    This  makes  an 
interesting  arithmetic  example. 

But  Mother  Nature  is  very  like  some  railroads. 
She  doesn't  stick  to  schedule  time  at  all  and,  as 
I  said,  the  very  best  way  is  to  keep  a  lookout  on 
some  particularly  pretty  garden  and  when  you 
see  the  gardener  planting  his  seed,  you  plant 
yours. 


LITTLE  FLOWER-GARDENER'S  TIME-TABLE 


NAME 


Balsam 


WHEN"  TO  START       LATER  TIME       WHEN  IT  BLOOMS 

(about) 

May  1  June  1  July  to  middle 

Sept. 


Bean  Vine              Apr.  20-30 

California    Poppy  March 

June  until   frost 

Candytuft                Apr.  20 

June  until  frost 

China  Asters           Apr.  20-30 

May  10-15 

July   until    frost 

Chionodoxa              Sept. 

Oct. 

Feb.,   Mar. 

Coreopsis                  Apr.  20 

May  10 

July  to  Nov. 

Cornflower               Apr.  1-20 

May  1-10 

June,    July, 

Cosmos                     Apr.  20 

May  1-10 

Sept.  to  frost 

Crocus                      Sept. 

Oct. 

Feb.,  Mar. 

Drummond's  Phlox  Mar. 

Apr.  10 

July  until  frost 

Easter  Lily 
it         a 

Gourds 
Golden  Glow 

Hollyhock 
Hyacinth 


August 
November 
May  1 
Mar.  20-30 


May  15 
Oct.  15 


Christmas 
Easter 
Aug. 
Sept. 


Plants  Mar.  Apr.  Sow  in  July  for  July 

next  year 

Oct.  Nov.,  Dec.          May 

in  house    «  «        "  Feb.,  Mar. 


WHEN"  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


47 


LITTLE  FLOWER-GARDNER'S  TIME-TABLE  —  Continued. 


NAME 


Larkspur 
Lily-of-the-Valley 

Marigolds     (Pot) 
Marigolds  French  ( 
African  | 
Mignonette 

Narcissus 

Jonquils 

Daffodils 

Narcissus  ( in  pots ) 
Nasturtiums 
Morning-Glory 
Pansies  (sow  seed) 


Sow  in  July  for 

next  year 
Nov.  May 


WHEN  TO  START      LATER  TIME       WHEN  IT  BLOOMS 

(about) 
'Apr.  15 

Mar.  or  soon  as 

you  can 
Mar.  25-30 
Apr.  25 

Mar.  or  soon 
as  you  can 
Sept.  Oct. 


Apr.  1 

May  1-8,  June 

'Apr.  1,  May  1, 

June  1 
Nov. 


July  until  Oct. 
July,  Aug.,  Sept. 
Apr.,  May. 


"       set  out 
Petunias 
Pinks 

Phlox    (hardy) 
Poppies 

Portulaca 
Scilla 
Snowdrops 
Sunflowers 
Sweet  Alyssum 
Sweet  Peas 

Tulips 

Tobacco  Plant 
Zinnia 


Sept.  Oct. 
Apr.  25, 
Apr.  15-30 
Mar. 

Apr. 

Apr.  15-30. 
Apr.  15-30 
Mar.  25,  Sept. 
Mar.  or  soon  as 

you  can 
May. 
Oct. 
Oct. 

May  1-15 
Apr.  1-15 
Mar.  or  soon  ai 

you  can 
Oct. 

Apr.  15 
May  1-8 


Nov.,  Feb.          Dec.,   Mar. 
May  1  July  until  Oct. 

July  until  frost 
15  July  July  until  frost 

(for  next  year) 
May,  June         May   until    Nov. 

June  to  Nov. 

July   until    frost 

July,  Aug. 

June,  July 


Apr. 


May  20 
Apr.   30 


Nov. 
Apr.   30 
June   1-8 


July,  Aug. 
Feb.,  Mar. 


May,  Nov. 
June,  Oct. 

April-May 
July,  Oct. 
July,  Oct. 


48 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


SONG  OF  THE  TOAD 

Oh,  let  no  naughty,  wicked  child  throw  little  stones  at 

me! 
I'm  watchman  for  the  flowers  and  from  harm  I  keep 

them  free. 
Any  horrid,  prowling  insect  that  at  night  would 

cause  alarm, 


Is  neatly  swallowed  down  by  me — put  where  he  does 
no  harm. 

I'm  better  than  the  hired  man  at  catching  noisome 
slugs, 

I  dine  at  night  on  cut-worms  and  I  breakfast  on  rose- 
bugs. 

The  thorniest  caterpillar,  he  is  safe  inside  of  me, 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  49 

And  worms  and  insects — any  kind — I  eat  them  all 

with  glee. 

So  place  for  me  a  cool,  flat  stone — a  hollow  tinder  it, 
And  here  whene'er  the  sun  is  hot,  I'll  comfortably  sit 
(I'll  earn  my  board  and  lodging — pay  you  ample 

rent  for  it). 
And  let  no  naughty  boy  or  girl  throw  wicked  stones 

at  me, 
I'm  the  watchman  for  your  flowers  and  you'd  best 

be  nice,  you  see. 


SOHG  OF  THE  WATEBING-POT 

This  is  the  song  of  the  Watering-Pot, 
Don't  use  me  when  the  sun  is  hot; 
Wait  until  he  has  gone  away, 
Fill  me  with  water  at  close  of  day; 
Then  soak  your  plants  and  soak  again, 
Soak  and  soak,  till  they  think  it's  rain, 
Soak  till  each  root  gets  all  it  wants — 
That's  the  way  to  water  your  plants! 

'  Next  morning  loosen  the  earth  on  top 
So  the  moisture  below  will  stop ; 
Then  hang  me  up  on  a  nail  quite  high, 
Don't  use  me  again  till  the  soil  is  dry." 


50  .WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


STAY-AT-HOME  PLANTS 

Candytuft  and  mignonette, 

Don't  transplant  or  you'll  regret. 

Morning-glory  and  nasturtium 

Hold  transplanting  in  aversion. 

All  sweet  peas  and  poppies  too 

Are  of  this  home-loving  crew. 

Cornflower  and  Japan  pink, 

Coreopsis,  too,  I  think, 

Petunia  and  sweet  alyssum, 

Moved  may  die  and  then  you'll  miss  'um! 


MAEKET  GARDENING 

The  chief  of  my  care  is  my  farming-affair 
To  make  my  corn  grow  and  my  apple-trees  bear. 

— Old  Song. 


51 


52  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  TJS  GARDEN 


BUSH  BEANS 

"Let  them  pass  as  they  will  too  soon 
With  the  bean-flowers'  boon 
And  the  blackbird's  tune 
And  May,  and  June." 

— Robert  Browning. 

"  It  was  one  of  the  most  bewitching  sights  in  the 
world  to  observe  a  hill  of  beans  thrusting  aside  the 
soil." 

— Hawthorne. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  53 


BUSH-BEAU'S 

About  the  first  of  May,  if  the  ground  is  warm 
and  there  is  no  danger  from  frost,  you  can  plant 
your  beans.  It  is  best  even  then  to  choose  a  shel- 
tered spot.  It  must  be  well  dug  and  manured 
slightly.  Eake  the  bed  smooth,  and  lay  a  board 
down  for  a  ruler.  With  a  sharp  stick  draw  a 
line  alongside  it,  making  a  little  furrow  two 
inches  deep.  In  this  drop  the  beans,  three  inches 
apart,  cover  over,  press  down,  and  water.  Make 
your  next  row  one  and  a  half  or  two  feet  from 
this  one. 

You  can  plant  beans  every  two  weeks  all  sum- 
mer, and  so  have  a  supply  of  fresh  young  beans ; 
but  when  you  are  planting  in  hot  weather,  re- 
member to  plant  the  seed  a  little  deeper,  three 
inches  instead  of  two,  and  water  before  you  cover 
the  beans  with  soil. 


54  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


THE  LATE  RISERS 

Beans  and  cucumbers,  melons,  corn — 
Don't  plant  these  till  the  weather's  warm ; 
Squash  and  tomato,  pumpkins,  too, 
Early  sowing  for  these  won't  do ! 


WHEN"  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN  55 


POLE  BEANS  OE  LIMA  BEANS 

First  plant  your  poles.  They  should  be  eight 
or  nine  feet  long  and  may  be  set  up  in  various  in- 
teresting positions.  You  can  have  them  down 
each  side  of  a  path  and  make  a  bean- walk.  You 
can  tie  a  stick  across  the  tops  and  make  a  bean 
pergola.  You  can  set  them  up  like  tripods,  or 
put  them  in  a  row  or  use  them  for  a  screen. 

Wait  until  the  weather  is  really  warm  before 
planting — the  fifteenth  or  twentieth  of  May  is 
time  enough  for  Lima  beans.  Draw  up  the  soil 
about  the  pole  until  it  makes  a  little  mound  three 
inches  high.  In  this  plant  your  beans  two  inches 
deep,  six  to  each  pole.  When  they  are  well  up, 
pull  out  the  weaker  seedlings,  leaving  only  three. 

If  the  beans  don't  grow  from  the  first  planting 
try  another  crop  in  June. 


56  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


PARSLEY,  BEETS,  CARROTS,  TURNIPS,  PARSNIPS 

"And  where  the  marjoram  once,  and  sage  and  rue, 
And  balm  and  mint,  with  curled-leaf  parsley- 


grew." 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  57 


PABSLEY,  BEETS,  CABBOTS,  TUBNIPS,  PABSNIPS 

As  soon  as  the  ground  can  be  dug  you  can  plant 
your  early  vegetables — beets,  carrots,  turnips, 
parsnip,  parsley. 

The  best  soil  is  a  rather  light  and  sandy  one; 
have  it  well  dug,  raked  smooth,  and  make  a  little 
furrow  two  inches  deep,  just  as  you  did  for 
beans.  In  this  drop  the  seed,  cover,  press  down, 
and  water  well  and  your  beets  are  planted.  The 
rows  should  be  a  foot  and  a  half  or  two  feet  apart. 

When  the  little  plants  are  up,  pull  out  the 
crowding  one  until  those  you  leave  stand  five 
inches  apart.  Young  beets  you  can  take  to  the 
kitchen  to  be  used  as  spinach  if  you  pull  them  up 
when  the  beet  is  only  as  large  as  a  hickory  nut. 
If  you  have  a  pony,  he  will  think  young  carrots 
nicer  than  the  nicest  sort  of  candy. 

You  can  sow  every  two  week,  then  you  will 
have  fresh  vegetables  coming  along  steadily. 


58  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


RADISHES 

"And  then  they  planted  cabbages, 
Potatoes,  corn  and  radishes. " 

— Oov.  Bradford. 


WHEN   MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


59 


RADISHES 

i 

Make  the  rows  eight  or  ten  inches  apart.  The 
soil  should  be  firm  and  light  and  rich.  Sow  the 
seed  and  cover  just  as  you  did  your  marigolds. 
Eadishes  can  be  sown  every  ten  days  until  June, 
then  it  is  a  little  too  warm  and  you  must  wait  un- 
til August  before  sowing  again.  Be  careful  not 
to  let  your  radishes  grow  too  large  before  you 
market  them.  The  smaller  ones  are  more  pala- 
table. 

If  you  want  to  grow  big  radishes,  try  the  Japa- 
nese Sakurajima.  This,  in  its  native  country,  is 
43  inches  around  the  waist. 


60  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GAEDEN 


LETTUCE 

Don't  let  your  lettuce  pine  for  a  drink; 
It  likes  water  oftener  than  you  think. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GAKDEN  61 


LETTTTCE 

rAs  soon  as  you  can  make  their  bed  soft  and 
mellow  you  can  plant  lettuce.  Sow  the  seed 
thinly  in  a  row,  just  as  you  planted  radishes. 
Cover  the  seed,  press  down  and  water.  In  two 
weeks  sow  another  row.  Big  Boston  is  perhaps 
the  best  sort  for  earliest  sowing  and  for  sowing 
in  the  autumn.  " Hanson"  is  good  for  warmer 
weather. 

When  the  first  little  seedlings  are  well  up,  pull 
out  the  little  plants,  leaving  only  the  sturdiest  to 
stand — ten  or  twelve  inches  apart.  Take  the 
baby  lettuce  plants  to  the  house  and  they  will 
make  a  delightful  salad.  If  you  like  you  can  set 
out  the  little  plants  instead. 

You  can  sow  lettuce  every  two  weeks  until 
July,  when  it  i ;  rather  hot  to  grow  it  well.  When 
the  middle  of  August  comes  sow  again,  and  sow 
twice  in  September. 


62  "WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN; 


DROUGHT  WATERING 

Dig  a  furrow  with  your  hoe 
In  the  space  between  each  row. 
Next  you  run  the  water  in  it; 
Let  it  stand  and  soak  a  minute. 
Boots  will  think  there's  been  a  rain 
When  you  fill  it  up  again. 
Put  back  the  soil  and  laugh  at  drought. 
The  sun  can't  find  this  watering  out. 


WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


63 


PEAS 

Garden  peas,  like  sweet  peas,  should  go  in  the 
soil  as  early  as  you  can  get  them.  Make  a  fur- 
row four  inches  deep  and  in  this  drop  the  seeds 
one  inch  apart.  Cover  and  press  down.  The 
next  row  should  be  four  feet  from  this  one. 
These  are  early  peas.  Don't  sow  wrinkled  peas 
until  the  ground  is  quite  warm,  in  May. 

In  August  you  can  plant  early  peas  again. 


64  WHEN   MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


COEN 

"Day  by  day  did  Hiawatha 
Go  to  wait  and  watch  beside  it: 
•        ••••••• 

Till  at  length  a  small  green  feather 
From  the  earth  shot  slowly  upward, 
Then  another  and  another, 
And  before  the  summer  ended, 
Stood  the  maize  in  all  its  beauty, 
.With  its  shining  robes  around  it, 
And  its  long,  soft,  yellow  tresses, 
And  in  rapture  Hiawatha 
Cried  aloud,  It  is  Mondamin." 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


65 


COEN 

Before  planting  your  corn,  wait  until  the 
weather  is  quite  warm — about  the  15th  or  the 
20th  of  May. 

Sow  in  hills,  three  feet  apart  each  way,  putting 
five  or  six  kernels  in  each  hill.  As  soon  as  the 
blades  are  up,  hoeing  can  begin,  and  here  is  a 
cheerful  occupation  for  you.  It  should  be  hoed 
once  a  week — oftener,  if  you  like.  When  hoe- 
ing, draw  the  soil  up  around  the  stems.  iYou  can 
sow  corn  at  intervals  of  two  or  three  weeks  until 
the  Fourth  of  July. 

The  best  kinds  are  Country  Gentleman  and 
StowelPs  Evergreen. 


66  WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GAKDEN 


WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN  67 

MUSKMELONS 

This  is  also  the  way  to  plant  squashes,  cucum- 
bers, pole,  or  Lima  beans. 

If  you  have  sandy  soil,  it  is  easy  enough  to 
grow  muskmelons,  and  this  is  the  way  to  do  it. 

Make  little  hills,  five  feet  part  from  each  other 
each  way — the  hills  should  be  about  three  inches 
higher  than  the  surface  of  the  ground.  In  these 
plant  your  seed ;  sow  eight  or  ten  seeds  in  each 
hill.  [When  the  little  plants  are  up,  before  they 
begin  to  crowd  each  other,  you  must  murder  the 
innocents ;  pull  out  the  weaker  ones  until  there 
are  left  only  three  seedlings  on  each  hill. 

Various  insects  are  fond  of  muskmelon  leaves. 
The  way  to  get  the  best  of  these  is  to  get  up  early 
in  the  morning  and,  while  the  dew  is  on  the 
leaves,  dust  lime  or  ashes  on  them.  This  won't 
hurt  the  melons,  but  it  will  discourage  the  insects 
who  had  thought  of  breakfasting  on  them. 

In  just  the  same  way  you  plant  cucumbers  and 
squashes  and  pole-beans. 

When  you  plant  squashes,  remember  to  plant 
them  a  long  way  off  from  your  melon  patch. 
Mother  Nature  sometimes  plays  practical  jokes 
on  gardeners  and  lets  the  wind  blow  the  pollen 
dust  from  the  flowers  of  one  to  the  flowers  of  the 
other,  and  " mixes  the  babies  up"  as  Buttercup 
did  in  Pinafore.  The  squashes  do  not  taste  so 
badly,  but  the  melons ! 


68  WHEN   MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


GARDEN  WARFARE 

Don't  wait  to  fight  insects  till  plenty  come; 

Kill  the  first,  and  the  second  brood  stays  at  home. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  69 


GROWING  JACK  O'LANTEKNS 

If  you  grow  your  own  Jack  O  'Lanterns,  about 
Hallowe'en  you  will  find  yourself  very  popular. 
It  would  be  a  good  idea  to  give  a  garden  party  the 
day  before,  inviting  your  friends  to  come  and 
bring  their  jack-knives.  You  could  give  each 
one  a  pumpkin  and  let  him  carve  his  own. 

All  you  have  to  do  is  to  remember  to  sow  the 
seed  at  the  end  of  May  in  the  corn-patch,  between 
the  hills  of  corn.  Plant  four  seeds  to  a  hill,  and 
have  the  hills  ten  feet  apart.  When  the  corn  has 
past,  the  pumpkins  will  be  on  hand  to  occupy  the 
ground. 


70  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


THE  WELL-AHMED  GARDENER 

I've  Bordeaux  for  all  kinds  of  rot; 

For  mildew  in  potato; 
For  white-spots  on  my  melon  leaves 

And  blight  on  my  tomato. 

iPyrethrmn  for  the  cabbage-worm 

And  for  his  lettuce  fellows ; 
.White  hellebore  for  currant-worms 

(This  is  applied  with  bellows). 

For  thrips  and  aphides,  mites  and  lice, 

I  have  tobacco  water. 
And  in  a  pan  of  oil  I  drop 

Each  rose-bug  (when  I've  caught  her), 

The  melon  leaves  I  dust  with  lime 
To  check  each  insect-sinner; 

My  gayly-striped  potato-bugs 
Have  Paris  green  for  dinner. 

I  give  the  insects  first  a  word 
Of  kind  and  friendly  warning, 

Which,  if  they  do  not  take,  why  thus 
I  kill  them  the  next  morning. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  71 


TOMATOES 

The  easiest  way  to  grow  tomatoes  is  to  buy  the 
plants  in  late  May  and  set  them  out  just  as  you 
plant  pansies,  except  that  they  must  be  in  the  sun. 

If  you  want  to  grow  them  all  yourself,  then  in 
February  plant  the  seed  in  boxes — flat  boxes 
about  three  inches  deep  and  filled  with  light, 
sandy  soil.  If  you  haven't  boxes,  you  can  use 
old  strawberry  baskets  or  tin  cans  (with  holes 
punched  in  the  bottom  for  drainage)  or  anything. 
Put  the  boxes  in  a  sunny  window. 

When  warm  weather  comes,  set  out  the  plants, 
putting  them  in  hills  four  feet  apart  each  way. 
The  best  way  to  manage  tomato  vines  (which  are 
undeniably  limp)  is  to  tie  each  vine  to  a  four-  or 
five-foot  stake.  Or,  if  you  prefer,  you  can  make 
a  trellis  for  them  like  a  miniature  grape  trellis, 
and  tie  them  to  this ;  they  will  then  make  a  more 
imposing  appearance. 

Once  a  week  cultivate  or  hoe  your  tomatoes. 

Keep  the  fruit  picked.  Even  if  your  family 
and  friends  have  abundance  and  you  can  find  no 
one  to  take  all  your  supply,  pick  it  and  throw 
away;  for  if  you  let  the  tomatoes  decay  on  the 
vines,  they  will  stop  bearing,  just  as  cornflowers 
and  sweet  peas  do. 


72 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


LITTLE  MABKET  GABDENEB'S  TIME  TABLE 


First 
Start 

Later 

Bush  Beans 

May  1 

May  20 

Lima  Beans 

May  15 

June 

Beet 

March  15 

April 

Carrot 

April 

April 

Cabbage 

April 

May 

Corn 

April  15 

May  30 

Cucumber 

May  15 

May  30 

Lettuce 

March 

April 

Melon 

May   1 

May  15 

Parsley 

March 

April 

Parsnip 

April 

April 

Peas 

March 

April 

Pumpkin 

May  1 

May  15 

Radish 

March 

April 

Squash 

May  1 

May  15 

Tomato 

February 

May  1 

indoors 

Turnip 

April 

May 

Latest 
Sowing 

First   Crop 
Ready  for 
Market 

July  15 

July 

August 

July 

June 

July 

July 

June  1 

August 

July  15 

July 

July 

July 

(for  pickles) 

October 

End  May 

June 

September  1 

June 

August 

August 

June 

May  30 

September  1 

August 

April 

May  30 

September 

June 

(set  out) 

July 

July 

(for  fall) 

INDOOE  GABDENING 


73 


WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


PLANTING  SEEDS 

When  the  sun  has  gone  away, 
That's  the  proper  time  of  day; 
If  you  plant  the  seed  too  deep, 
Then  the  leaves  may  never  peep. 
Seeds  four  times  their  depth  must  go—- 
That is,  if  they  are  to  grow. 

Keep  the  ground  stirred  in  your  garden-plot, 
It's  better  than  too-much-watering-pot. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  75 


WHERE  TO  PLANT  THE  WINDOW  GARDEN 

If  your  mother  lets  you  have  a  window  garden, 
before  you  get  your  plants  or  before  she  gives 
you  any,  be  sure  you  find  out  what  window  it  is 
you  are  to  have.  The  best  is  a  sunny  south  win- 
dow. Here  you  can  grow  almost  anything. 
Next  best  is  an  east  window.  This  has  the 
morning  sun,  but  even  if  you  have  a  west  win- 
dow or  a  north  window  you  can  have  some  sort 
of  a  garden.  A  kitchen  window  is  a  very  good 
place  for  a  window  garden,  for  the  plants  like 
the  steam  from  the  cooking. 

In  a  north  window,  you  can  grow  English  ivy, 
cyclamen,  Boston  fern  and  bulbs,  like  narcissus. 
In  a  south  window,  you  can  grow  geraniums, 
heliotropes,  azaleas,  and  almost  any  kind  of  flow- 
ering plant. 


76  WHEN  MOTHEK  LETS  US  GAKDEN 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  77 


NARCISSUS  IN  STONES  AND  WATEE 

Get  some  bulbs  of  paper-white  narcissus. 
For  the  stones,  if  you  haven't  any,  you  can  buy 
a  quart  of  pebbles  for  ten  cents.  Any  kind  of 
a  bowl  or  deep  dish  will  do.  Put  about  one  inch 
of  pebbles  in  the  bottom.  Set  the  bulbs  on  this 
— as  many  as  the  dish  will  hold.  Fill  in  around 
them  with  pebbles,  enough  to  keep  the  bulbs  in 
place.  Then  pour  in  water,  until  it  barely 
touches  the  bottom  of  the  bulbs.  Set  the  dish 
in  a  cool,  dark  place  for  two  weeks,  until  plenty 
of  roots  have  formed ;  then  bring  it  to  the  light 
but  don't  put  it  yet  in  a  sunny  window — wait 
until  the  leaves  are  well  up  and  the  flower  stalks 
and  the  white  petals  begin  to  push  out.  Then 
put  the  bowl  in  the  sunshine  and  it  will  flower 
beautifully. 

This  is  one  way  you  can  grow  Eoman  hya- 
cinths, jonquils,  yellow  mammoth  crocuses,  Chi- 
nese lily.  But  the  paper-white  narcissi  are  the 
easiest  and  surest.  The  Chinese  lily  you  have  to 
be  sure  to  keep  warm. 


78  .WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN. 


WATERING  PLANTS 

When  you  water  your  plants,  pour  in  until 
the  water  runs  out  of  the  pot  at  the  bottom.  Let 
the  water  stand  in  the  saucer  about  fifteen  min- 
utes ;  some  of  it  will  be  taken  up  again.  Then 
pour  off  what  is  left. 

These  are  thirsty  plants :  Azaleas,  heliotrope, 
bulbs  when  coming  into  flower,  Boston  fern  and 
asparagus  fern. 

Keep  a  pan  filled  with  water  in  the  shelf  with 
your  plants. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


79 


HYACINTHS  IN  WATER 

For  this,  the  first  things  to  get  are  the  hya- 
cinth bulbs,  the  next,  the  hyacinth  glasses. 
Don't  buy  " double  hyacinths,"  the  single  ones 
are  best  for  growing  in  this  way.  Hyacinth 
glasses  have  a  cup-shaped  place  at  the  top  which 
holds  the  bulb,  but  lets  the  roots  go  down  to  the 
water.  Dark-colored  glasses  are  best — roots  al- 
ways dislike  light. 

Fill  the  glasses  with  water,  which  must  almost, 
not  quite,  touch  the  bulb.  Put  a  small  lump  of 
charcoal  in  each  glass.  Then  set  them  away  in 
a  cool,  dark  place  to  stay  for  a  month  or  more, 
until  the  glass  is  well  filled  with  roots. 

Then  bring  the  glass  to  the  light  just  as  you 
brought  the  tulip  bulbs. 

In  the  same  way  you  can  grow  mammoth  yel- 
low crocuses,  Due  van  Thol  tulips,  narcissus. 


80  [WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


THIS  IS  THE  WAY  TO  TEAIN  A  GERANIUM 

When  the  little  plant  is  five  inches  high,  cut 
off  the  top.  This  will  make  it  branch  out.  When 
the  branches  are  five  or  six  inches  long,  cut  them 
off  until  they  are  only  three  inches.  This  will 
make  them  branch  out.  Keep  on  this  way  until 
your  plant  has  lots  of  branches,  like  a  tree  has, 
instead  of  one  or  two  long  thin  ones,  when  it 
will  flower  from  twenty  or  thirty  different 
places  instead  of  only  from  one  or  two. 

When  the  soil  is  dry,  give  the  plant  a  good 
soaking.  Give  it  water  until  it  runs  out  of  the 
bottom  of  the  pot,  then  don't  water  again  until 
the  soil  is  dry.  But  whenever  you  can  do  it, 
take  the  plant  to  the  kitchen  sink  and  give  it  a 
shower  bath. 

Geraniums  like  sunshine. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  81 


HOW  TO  GROW  GERANIUMS 

In  October,  when  your  mother  brings  her 
plants  indoors,  probably  she  "cuts  back"  her 
geraniums.  If  she  doesn't,  she  ought.  You 
can  use  the  pieces  cut  off  to  make  little  gera- 
niums out  of,  and  if  you  take  good  care  of  them 
in  the  spring  your  geraniums  will  be  better  gera- 
niums than  your  mother's.  This  will  give  you  a 
pleased  and  proud  feeling. 

First  get  something  —  a  pot  or  a  tin  can;  fill 
this  with  sand;  then  take  the  little  pieces  of 
geranium  stalk  and  cut  them  off  just  below  a 
joint  or  where  a  leaf  starts.  Snip  the  lower 
leaves  off  short. 

Cut  off  the  tops  of  the  upper  leaves.  This 
will  make  them  stop  thinking  about  growing 
for  a  while  and  the  roots  can  have  time  to  get 
strong.  Take  an  old  jack-knife  and  make  a  hole 
with  it  in  the  damp  sand.  Set  your  cutting  in 
this — don't  push  it  in — that  cut  end  is  very  sen- 
sitive and  you  mustn't  bruise  it. 


82 


WHEN   MOTHEK  LETS  US  GAKDEN 


/<& 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  83 


POTTINQ  TULIPS,  DAFFODILS,  HYACINTHS 

When  September  comes  or  early  October,  you 
can  "put  up"  tulips  and  hyacinths  in  pots  as 
your  mother  puts  up  preserves  to  have  ready  to 
bring  out  from  time  to  time  during  the  winter. 
They  can  all  be  "put  up"  at  once,  put  in  a  cool 
place  for  storage  and  brought  out  one  by  one,  so 
that  no  matter  how  your  mother's  window  gar- 
den flourishes,  you  will  have  something  in  bloom 
from  Thanksgiving  to  March. 

First  get  your  bulbs.  Next  find  the  pots  or 
boxes  to  put  them  in.  You  can  use  flat  bulb- 
pans.  The  flowers  look  prettiest  in  these  or  ordi- 
nary flowerpots,  or  else  shallow  wooden  boxes, 
three  inches  deep  and  of  any  size  you  please. 

Next  comes  the  soil.  This  should  be  sand  and 
garden  loam — be  sure  there  is  quite  a  bit  of  sand 
in  it.  Put  a  half -inch  layer  of  broken  crock  in 
the  pot  for  drainage.  Then  put  a  layer  of  soil — 
then  set  the  tulip  bulbs  on  this ;  fill  in  all  around 
them  till  the  soil  is  within  one-half  inch  of  the 
top  of  the  pot.  The  noses  of  the  bulbs  should 
be  just  at  the  top  of  the  soil.  Jar  the  pot  to 
shake  it  down — don't  press  it,  water  well  and 
then  your  "preserves"  are  ready  to  be  put  away. 

Set  the  pots  either  in  a  cool  dark  cellar,  or 


84: 


WHEN   MOTHEK  LETS  US  GAEDEN 


else  dig  a  hole  two  feet  deep,  put  three  inches  of 
ashes  in  the  bottom  to  keep  out  the  worms.  On 
this  set  the  pot  of  bulbs — fill  in  with  soil,  bank 
the  top  with  three  inches  of  manure  and  straw 
to  keep  the  ground  from  freezing  so  that  you 
can't  dig  out  your  pots. 
In  just  this  way  you  can  plant 


Narcissus. 

Daffodils. 

Hyacinths. 


Tulips. 

Miniature  Hyacinths. 


But  hyacinths  like  to  have  more  than  the  tips 
of  their  noses  out  of  the  soil;  they  like  to  have 
their  shoulders  out,  too.  So  when  you  plant 
them,  remember  to  leave  one-third  of  the  bulb 
uncovered. 


.WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  85 

HOW  TO  TAKE  CAEE  OE  A  BOSTON  FERN 

If  your  mother's  Boston  fern  looks  unhappy 
and  bedraggled,  get  her  to  give  it  to  you.  [Very 
likely  she  has  set  it  somewhere  in  the  drawing- 
room  or  hall  where  she  thought  it  looked  pretty, 
but  where  the  poor  thing  didn't  have  much  light 
and  air.  This  is  the  sort  of  thing  grown  people 
are  very  apt  to  do  to  plants. 

First  cut  off  any  leaves  that  are  turning  yel- 
low. Cut  them  off  at  the  base  and  burn  them. 
Next  fill  the  bath-tub  half  full  of  water,  and  set 
the  pot  in  this,  so  that  the  water  comes  over  the 
rim.  If  your  mother  thinks  this  hard  on  the 
porcelain  of  the  tub,  take  a  tin  wash-boiler,  or  a 
pail,  set  the  plant  in  it  and  fill  up  with  water 
that  has  had  the  chill  taken  off  it.  Let  the 
plant  stay  half  an  hour  and  drink  all  it  can. 
Probably  this  is  the  first  good  drink  it  has  had 
for  a  long  time. 

Sprinkle  with  a  syringe — if  you  haven't  one, 
take  a  whisk-broom,  dip  it  in  the  water  and 
shake  over  the  fern  until  the  leaves  are  wet. 

Then  find  a  comfortable  place  for  it.  A  Bos- 
ton fern  likes  a  cool  room  and  prefers  an  east  or 
north  window ;  it  needs  light,  but  not  sunshine. 
Shower  the  leaves  every  day,  soak  it  thoroughly 
once  a  week  and  water  twice  a  week. 


86  WHEN   MOTHER  LETS   US  GARDEN 


MAKING  PLANTS  FROM  LEAVES 

This  is  lots  of  fun.  If  you  can  get  your 
mother  to  cut  off  a  leaf  from  a  rubber  plant  or 
a  begonia  (one  of  the  gorgeous-leaved  begonias), 
you  can  make  plants  out  of  them.  Cut  off  the 
top  half  of  the  rubber-tree  leaf,  and  put  the 
lower  part  in  the  sand,  the  leaf  standing  up- 
right, as  if  it  were  a  sail,  and  it  will  grow ;  that 
is  all. 

Lay  the  begonia  leaf  flat  on  the  sand.  Get 
some  toothpicks  and  pin  the  leaf  down  to  the 
sand  with  them,  sticking  them  through  at  the 
ribs.  This  makes  lots  of  little  plants — they 
start  where  the  leaf  is  broken.  Or  else  you  can 
tear  the  leaf  and  set  it  upright,  the  torn  edge  in 
the  damp  sand,  and  little  plants  will  grow  from 
this. 

When  they  have  started  and  are  growing 
nicely,  pot  them  just  as  you  potted  the  gera- 
niums, only  the  begonias  don't  like  so  much  sun- 
light. They  are  happiest  in  a  rather  cool  room 
and  an  east  window. 

Then  press  the  sand  around  it  closely.  You 
can  put  eight  or  ten  cuttings  like  this  in  one  pot. 
Set  the  pot  in  the  shade  for  three  days,  then  in 
the  sunlight — keep  the  sand  moist. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS   US  GARDEN  87. 

.When  the  little  plants  are  beginning  to  grow, 
when  you  see  little  leaves  sprouting,  then  you 
must "  pot  "them. 

First,  have  little  three-inch  pots  ready  and 
some  soil.  This  you  can  get  from  a  florist  for  a 
few  cents.  Take  the  little  plants  out  carefully 
— don't  pull  them  out — stick  the  old  knife  in  the 
soil  a  little  way  from  the  plant  stem  and  pry  out 
the  infant — you  mustn't  hurt  the  roots. 

Hold  the  little  plant  in  your  left  hand  so  that 
it  is  in  the  middle  of  the  pot.  Fill  in  with  soil 
with  your  right  hand — just  as  you  planted  the 
rose  bush.  Then  press  down,  water  well,  and 
let  the  young  geraniums  stand  in  the  shade  for  a 
few  days,  then  give  them  the  sunshine  again. 

Plants  which  are  very  easy  to  start  in  the 
same  way  are  abutilon,  begonia. 


88  WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  89 


EASTER  LILY 

This  is  one  of  the  loveliest  plants  to  grow.  In 
October  get  your  bulbs. 

Take  a  five-inch  pot ;  in  this  put  some  drain- 
age material,  then  a  layer  of  soil,  four  inches 
below  the  top  of  the  pot.  On  this  set  the 
brown  lily  bulb  and  just  cover  it  with  soil.  Put 
it  in  a  cool  place  in  the  cellar.  In  about  two 
weeks  the  stalk  will  begin  to  push  up,  then  fill 
in  about  it  with  soil,  Keep  on  doing  this,  filling 
up  with  soil  as  fast  as  the  stalk  comes  up,  until 
the  pot  is  filled  to  within  one-half  inch  of  the 
top — that  is  plenty.  By  the  middle  of  January 
you  can  bring  the  pots  to  the  light.  Put  them 
in  a  cool  room  and  spray  the  foliage  often.  If 
Easter  is  getting  near  and  you  want  to  hurry  the 
flower,  bring  it  into  a  warm  room  and  the  sun- 
light. 

If  you  would  like  to  have  the  lily  in  blossom 
at  Christmas,  then  pot  it  in  early  August,  treat 
it  just  the  same  way,  and  in  early  October  bring 
it  into  the  house.  This  makes  a  very  lovely 
Christmas  present. 


90 


.WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN- 


SHKTTB-BRANCHES  BLOSSOM 

In  February,  if  the  hired  man  prunes  for- 
sythias  and  deutzias — as  he  oughtn't  to  do — col- 
lect the  branches,  put  them  in  water  in  a  cool 
room  and  not  in  the  sunlight.  In  a  little  while 
the  buds  will  begin  to  swell  and  show  color. 
Then  put  the  jar  in  a  sunny  window  and  in 
about  a  week  they  will  be  in  full  blossom. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


91 


GARDEN  PLANTS  FOE  THE  WINDOW  BOX 

In  late  September  or  October,  look  over  your 
garden  and  you  may  find  some  plants  which  will 
do  nicely  for  your  window  box. 

Here  are  some  annuals  which  would  die  in  a 
little  while  that,  if  you  take  up,  will  be  glad  to 
bloom  for  you  for  a  little  while,  at  least.  Stocks, 
astors,  tobacco  plant,  pansies,  marigolds,  sweet 
alyssum.  Pick  out  the  smaller  plants,  ones  that 
have  not  bloomed  very  much. 

Give  the  plants  a  thorough  soaking.  Five 
hours  afterward  dig  them  up  carefully.  Have 
the  pot  or  box  ready — then  dig  up  your  plant, 
try  to  get  up  all  the  roots.  Pot  it  carefully,  just 
as  you  potted  the  geranium  cuttings. 

Next,  cut  back  the  plant  and  set  it  in  the  shade 
for  a  few  days.  Afterwards  you  can  bring  it  to 
the  light  and  it  will  go  on  blooming. 


92  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  93 


GAEDEN  AGGESSOEIES 

In  the  garden  lay  supinely 

A  huge  giant  wrought  of  spade ; 

Arms  and  legs  were  stretched  at  length 

In  a  passive  giant  strength, — 
The  meadow  turf,  cut  finely, 

Bound  them  laid  and  interlaid. 

Call  him  Hector,  son  of  Priam ! 
Such  his  title  and  degree, 
With  my  rake  I  smoothed  his  brow, 
Both  his  cheeks  I  weeded  through; 

But  a  rhymer  such  as  I  am, 
Scarce  can  sing  his  dignity. 

Eyes  of  gentianella  azure, 

Staring,  winking  at  the  skies ; 

Nose  of  gillyflowers  and  box; 

Scented  grasses  put  for  locks, 
Which  a  little  breeze  at  pleasure 

Set  a-waving  round  his  eyes. 

Brazen  helm  of  daffodillies 
With  a  glitter  toward  the  light; 
Purple  violets  for  the  mouth, 
Breathing  perfumes  west  and  south ; 

And  a  sword  of  flashing  lilies, 
Holden  ready  for  the  fight. 


94  WHEN   MOTHER  LETS   US  GARDEN 

And  a  breastplate  made  of  daisies, 
Closely  fitting,  leaf  on  leaf; 
Periwinkles  interlaced 
Drawn  for  belt  around  the  waist ; 

While  the  brown  bees,  humming  praises, 
Shot  their  arrows  round  the  chief. ' ' 
Hector  in  the  Garden. — ELIZ.  BROWNING. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  95 


HERE  ARE  SOME  EASY  GARDEN  BEDS 

TOBACCO  PLANT 

DWARF   NASTURTIUMS 

EDGING    OF    DWARF    FRENCH    MARIGOLDS 

The  tobacco  plant  is  the  tallest,  so  that  goes  at 
the  back.  Next  comes  a  row  of  dwarf  nastur- 
tiums and  last  the  little  edging  of  marigolds. 
If  the  bed  is  very  wide,  you  can  put  a  row  of 
sunflowers  behind  the  tobacco  plant. 


ANOTHER  GARDEN  BED 

Zinnias 

Shirley  poppies 

Cornflowers 

Edging  of  sweet  alyssum. 

First  sow  the  Shirley  poppies  and  the  corn- 
flowers; these  you  can  sow  very  early.  Then 
sow  the  zinnias  in  rows  six  inches  apart  and  the 
little  edging  of  sweet  alyssum.  When  the  pop- 
pies have  gone  by,  you  can  pull  them  up,  dig  up 
some  of  the  zinnias  and  put  them  in  their  places. 


96 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


-Little    Vjcarclen    J^x  15  feet 


Plan  of  Little  Garden 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  97 


LITTLE  QARDEN  15x15  FEET 

This  little  garden  is  in  the  corner  of  a  back- 
yard. A  bed  of  sunflowers  screens  it  on  one 
side,  a  hedge  of  sweet  peas  makes  the  other 
boundary.  The  little  summerhouse  is  made  by 
a  post  at  the  outside  corner  where  the  nastur- 
tiums are  and  this  is  connected  at  the  top  with 
the  two  sides  of  the  fence.  Strips  of  wire  net- 
ting, a  foot  wide,  fastened  to  the  ground  with 
staples  and  nailed  to  the  crosspiece  at  the  top, 
make  the  walls  of  the  playhouse. 

The  first  thing  to  plant  for  this  little  garden 
beside  the  post  for  the  playhouse  is  a  hedge  of 
sweet  peas  and  the  poppies.  Then  you  can  set 
out  hollyhock  plants  against  the  fence.  A  little 
later  in  April,  plant  the  Drummond's  phlox,  and 
in  May  plant  your  nasturtiums,  morning-glories 
and  the  tall  sunflowers.  The  grass  space  in  the 
middle,  and  the  summerhouse  will  give  you  room 
enough  to  entertain  your  friends. 


98  WHEN   MOTHEK  LETS  US  GARDEN 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  99 

GARDEN  PLAYHOUSES 

An  easy  kind  of  garden  playhouse  is  made  of 
poles,  such  as  beans  are  used  to  climb  on.  Set 
them  up  in  tent-fashion.  Stick  the  poles  into 
the  ground,  a  foot  apart,  and  secure  them  with 
cord  at  the  top  to  a  crosspole.  The  poles  can 
be  as  long  as  you  like — the  longer  the  poles,  the 
larger  playhouse  you  can  make.  At  the  foot  of 
each  alternate  pole,  plant  ornamental  gourds — 
just  as  you  plant  melons — and  early  May  is  the 
time  to  do  this. 

There  are  a  great  many  kind  of  gourds  which 
you  might  use.  There  is  the  squirting  cucumber, 
dipper,  dishcloth,  mock-orange,  Hercules  club. 
They  grow  up  very  fast  and  cover  anything  very 
quickly. 

You  can  use  other  vines  to  cover  your  play- 
house, such  as  nasturtiums  and  scarlet  runner 
beans,  but  they  will  not  make  so  tight  a  roof  as 
the  gourds. 

Another  easy  playhouse  you  can  make  with 
poles  is  made  like  an  Indian  wigwam.  Draw 
a  circle  as  large  as  you  want  the  playhouse  to  be. 
Plant  the  poles  at  its  outer  edge  a  foot  and  a 
half  apart,  leaving,  of  course,  space  for  a  door, 
and  then  fasten  them  together  at  the  top.  At 
the  foot  of  each  pole,  you  can  sow  scarlet  runner 
beans  or  ornamental  gourds;  these  will  cover 
your  playhouse. 


100  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


GARDEN  FITENITUEE 

Of  course,  you  will  like  to  entertain  your 
friends  in  your  garden.  If  there  is  a  shady 
spot  where  plants  don't  grow  very  well,  that's  a 
good  place  for  a  seat. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  101 


GARDEN  BENCHES 

If  you  live  in  the  country,  here  is  an  easy  way 
to  make  a  garden  bench.  Take  two  "  chunks, " 
logs  that  have  been  sawed  (they  are  usually  a 
foot  long),  ready  for  splitting.  Pick  out  two 
that  are  the  same  length  and  which  have  been 
sawed  evenly — so  that  if  you  stand  them  up  on 
end  the  tops  will  be  flat.  Tote  them  out  to  the 
place  in  the  garden  where  you  want  them  and 
see  how  long  your  seat  ought  to  be,  standing  one 
for  one  end  and  one  for  the  other.  Then  find  a 
board,  nail  it  on  top. 

The  easiest  place  to  make  a  seat  in  a  city  back- 
yard is  against  the  fence  and  in  the  corner. 
Take  the  shady  corner  and  put  the  board  like  a 
shelf,  resting  one  edge  on  the  ledge  of  the  fence. 
Nail  it  there  and  make  legs  to  support  the  front 
edge.  tYou  can  call  this  an  exedra  if  you  like. 


102 


.WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GAKDEN 


GARDEN  TABLES 

You  can  find  a  good-sized  " chunk"  with  a 
nice  flat  top.  On  this  you  can  nail  your  table 
top — boards  fastened  together  to  form  a  square, 
or  if  you  prefer  a  round  table,  use  a  barrel-head 
for  a  top.  A  piece  of  drain  tile  stood  on  end 
can  be  used  instead  of  the  " chunk." 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  103 


SWINGING  TABLE 

This  is  another  table  that  dispenses  with  the 
troublesome  and  uncertain  four  legs.  This  can 
be  swung  from  a  tree  if  the  branch  is  low 
enough.  First  make  your  table  top.  Two 
cleats  on  the  under  side  of  a  packing-box  cover 
makes  a  good  one.  Bore  a  hole  in  each  corner 
of  the  top.  Take  two  pieces  of  rope  that  will 
fit  the  holes.  Sling  them  over  the  branch,  then 
fasten  an  end  of  each  to  one  side  of  the  table. 
Push  the  other  ends  through  the  opposite  holes 
and  pull  the  ropes  through  until  the  table  is  the 
right  height — just  as  you  adjust  a  swing.  Add 
a  Japanese  lantern  for  decoration. 

For  such  a  table  in  a  back-yard  garden,  you 
can  lay  a  pole  or  nail  a  support  in  place  across 
the  corner  of  the  fence.  When  not  in  use,  such 
a  table  can  be  hauled  up  out  of  the  way. 


GIVING  THE  PLANTS  AIR 

In  the  middle  of  the  day,  when  it  is  warm, 
open  the  windows  and  let  the  plants  have  some 
air.  More  plants  suffer  from  lack  of  it  than 
you  have  any  idea  of. 


104  WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


GIVING  HOUSE  PLANTS  A  BATH 

Plants  are  like  children;  they  need  air  and 
light  and  they  also  need  plenty  of  washing. 

If  your  mother  has  been  thoughtful  enough  to 
put  a  piece  of  oil-cloth  over  the  floor  in  front  of 
your  window  garden,  then  you  can  give  your 
plants  a  bath  very  easily.  If  you  have  a  syr- 
inge, squirt  water  with  it  over  them  every  day, 
especially  on  the  under  sides  of  the  leaves.  This 
will  keep  them  nice  and  clean  and  you  won't 
have  much  bother  with  insects ;  or,  you  can  take 
each  plant  to  the  kitchen  sink  and  sprinkle  it 
thoroughly  there  with  a  syringe  or  a  whisk- 
broom.  It  is  well  to  have  your  mother's  or  the 
cook's  permission  for  this. 

About  once  in  two  weeks,  your  plant  family 
ought  to  have  a  bath  in  soap  and  water.  Take 
a  tin  wash-boiler  or  deep  dish-pan,  fill  it  with 
lukewarm  water  and  make  a  strong  suds  with 
white  laundry  soap.  Take  your  plants,  one  by 
one,  and  hold  each  one  firmly  by  the  pot  and  dip 
it  head  downward  in  the  water.  Afterwards 
sprinkle  with  clear  water.  This  is  about  the 
easiest  way  of  giving  them  a  bath. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  105 


INSECTS 

There  are  two  kinds  of  insects  that  worry  a 
gardener.  There  are  those  that  can  be  killed  by 
shooting  at  them  with  a  syringe  charged  with 
some  destructive  stuff,  as  soldiers  attack  a  town 
with  shot  and  shell. 

But  there  are  others  that  have  such  fine  armor 
and  such  hard  shell  on  their  little  backs,  that 
you  can  shoot  anything  you  like  and  unless  it  is 
strong  enough  to  kill  the  plants,  it  doesn't  hurt 
them.  To  meet  these  you  have  to  put  something 
on  their  food  which,  if  they  eat  it,  will  kill  them. 
Then  you  wait  and  see  if  they  eat  it ;  if  you  like 
you  can  sing : 

"Dilly,  dilly,  diUy,  dilly,  come  and  be  killed," 
as  Mrs.  Bond  sang  to  her  ducks. 

THE   INSECTS   YOU    CAN  THIS    IS   WHAT    YOU 

SHOOT    AT    ARE    THESE:  SHOOT  THEM  WITH: 

Plant  lice.  Tobacco  water. 

Red  spiders.  Clean  water. 

Mealy  bugs.  Soap  and  water. 

Green  hollyhock  bug.  Tobacco  water. 

Bed  aphis  on  sweet  peas.  Tobacco  water. 


106  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 

THE    INSECTS    YOU    MUST    PER-  WHAT  YOU   GIVE 

SUADE    TO    KILL    THEMSELVES  I  THEM     TO    EAT: 

Green  lettuce  worm.  Pyrethrum. 

Rose-slugs.  Hellebore. 

Cabbage  worm.  Pyrethrum. 

Eose  bugs  you  will  have  to  pick  off  with  your 
fingers  and  drop  in  a  pan  of  kerosene. 

Cutworms  you  have  to  look  for  just  under  the 
surface  near  the  stalk  of  the  plant  and  kill  them 
yourself,  or  you  can  make  a  deep  hole  with  a 
sharp  stick  near  the  plant  and  the  guileless  cut- 
worms will  fall  into  this  during  the  night  and  in 
the  morning  you  can  get  them  out  and  kill  them 
or  use  them  for  fishing. 


WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  ITS  GARDEN          107 

THE  EARLY  RISERS 

"The  Early  Bird  catches  the  worm; 
The  Early  Gardener,  the  market." 

The  Early  Gardener  first  sows  these — 

[Parsley,  lettuce,  and  smooth-shelled  pease, 

Cabbage,  turnip,  radish,  beet, 

And  (his  planting  to  complete), 

Parsnip,  potatoes,  carrots,  he 

Gets  in  the  ground  as  soon  as  may  be. 

THE  WISE  GARDENER 
The  morning  after  a  heavy  rain 
The  gardener  takes  his  hoe  again, 
Loosens  the  soil  between  the  rows, 
And  the  moisture  will  stay  at  the  roots  he  knows. 

CULTIVATION 

To  hoe  or  cultivate  once  a  week 

Makes  vegetables  cheerful  and  keeps  the  weeds  meek. 

A  BULB'S  REQUIREMENTS 

A  hole  that  is  just  four  times  as  deep 

As  I  myself  am  tall ; 
A  cushion  of  sand  to  sit  upon, 

And  right  side  up — that  is  all. 

My  nose  must  be  pointing  to  the  air, 

My  base  to  the  ground  below; 
Cover  with  earth  and  leave  me  alone, 

And  when  spring  comes — watch  me  grow ! 


108  WHEN  MOTHEB  LETS  US  GAEDEN 


THE  MEDICINE  CHEST 

"On  every  stem,  on  every  leaf,  and  on  both  sides 
of  it,  and  at  the  root  of  everything  that  grew,  was  a 
professional  specialist  in  the  shape  of  a  gnat,  cater- 
pillar, aphis,  or  other  expert,  whose  business  it  was 
to  devour  that  particular  part  and  help  murder  the 
whole  attempt  at  vegetation." 

— Oliver  Wendell  Holmes. 


WHEN   MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN  109 


HOW  TO  PEEPAEE  MEDICINES 

Pyrethrum:  There  are  three  brands  of  this; 
you  can  use  any  of  them.  They  are  called  Per- 
sian Insect  Powder,  Dalmatian  Insect  Powder, 
and  Buhach.  Before  you  sprinkle  on  the 
powder,  mix  it  with  three  parts  of  flour.  That 
is,  take  one  teaspoonful  of  the  powder  and  three 
teaspoonfuls  of  flour,  mix  well  together  and  dust 
on  the  leaves  when  they  are  wet. 

Tobacco  Tea  or  Tobacco  Water:  Take  one- 
half  pound  of  ground  tobacco — the  cheapest  you 
can  buy  (don't  use  your  father's;  the  plants 
wouldn't  like  it,  and  he  mightn't  like  it). 
Pour  on  this  two  quarts  of  boiling  water.  Let 
it  stand  until  cool.  Then  take  a  syringe  and 
spray  the  plants  with  this.  If  you  haven't  a 
syringe,  take  a  whisk-broom,  dip  it  in  and  shake 
it  over  the  plants. 

White  Hellebore:  Be  sure  the  hellebore  is 
fresh.  Dust  it  on  the  plants  when  the  leaves  are 
wet. 

Soap  and  water:  Cut  in  thin  pieces  a  quar- 
ter of  a  pound  of  Ivory  soap,  pour  a  quart  of 
water  over  this  and  set  on  the  stove  to  dissolve. 
When  dissolved,  put  in  a  wash-boiler  and  add 
five  gallons  of  water.  Syringe  the  plants  with 
this  or  dip  them  in  it. 


110  .WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN 


THE  TOOL  BOX 

Garden  tools  make  very  pleasing  birthday 
presents.  Here  are  some  that  you  might  sug- 
gest to  parents  or  friends  who  are  anxiously 
considering  what  to  give  you : 

Scuffle  Hoe:  This  is  a  tool  which  makes 
weeding  easier  and  pleasanter.  [You  push  it  be- 
tween the  rows. 

Wheel  Hoe:  This  is  fine  for  cultivating  your 
garden.  Bun  it  between  the  rows  once  a  week 
and  the  plants  will  thrive  and  the  weeds  won't. 
It  is  also  so  interesting  an  implement,  with  the 
little  wheel  in  front  and  the  bright  red  handles, 
that  it  is  easy  to  beguile  friends  and  visitors 
into  pushing  it.  You  can  even  show  your  little 
sister  how  to  fasten  her  doll  to  it  and  give  it  a 
ride  between  the  garden  rows,  which  will  be 
more  instructive  than  a  ride  in  a  doll-carriage. 

DilUe:  This  you  can  make  yourself.  Take 
the  handle  of  a  broken  spade  or  earth-fork,  cut 
it  off  so  that,  with  the  handle,  it  is  only  a  foot 
long.  Sharpen  the  cut  end.  This  is  a  handy 
little  tool  in  transplanting. 

Rake,  earth-fork,  spade,  hoe,  trowel,  water- 
ing pot.  These  are  too  familiar  to  need  descrip- 


WHEN  MOTHEB  LETS  US  GARDEN  111 

tion.  If  you  do  not  own  them,  usually  they  can 
be  conveniently  and  economically  borrowed 
from  your  parents. 


"  When  the  golden  day  is  done, 

Through  the  closing  portal, 
Child  and  garden,  flower  and  sun, 
Vanish  all  things  mortal. 

Garden  darkened,  dairy  shut, 
Child  in  bed,  they  slumber — 

Glow-worm  in  the  highway  rut, 
Mice  among  the  lumber. 

In  the  darkness  houses  shine, 

Parents  move  with  candles; 
Till,  on  all,  the  night  divine 

Turns  the  bedroom  handles." 

— R.  L.  Stevenson. 


When  Mother  Lets  Us"  Series 


"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  COOK."— By  CONSTANCE  JOHNSON. 

An  admirable  cook  book  for  very  young  cooks.    Of  genuine  value. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  ACT."-By  STELLA  GEORGE  STERN  PERRY. 

A  contribution  of  great  value  in  amateur  dramatics.    This  is  not  a  book  for  work, 
it  is  a  book  for  play.    Tbere  is  nothing  to  learn  by  heart  in  it. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  MAKE  PAPER-BOX  FURNITURE." -By Q. 
KLLINOWOOD  RICH,  Brooklyn  Training  School  for  Teachers. 

This  book  shows  exactly  how  to  make  fascinating  doll's  furniture  out  of  paper 
boxes  and  materials  which  cost  nothing.   The  ideas  are  new  and  unique. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  MAKE  GIFTS."-By  MART B.  QRUBB. 

Tells  children  how  to  make  all  sorts  of  useful  and  charming  things  to  give  their 
parents  and  friends.    No  great  outlay  is  required. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  MAKE  TOYS."-By  G.  ELUNSWOOD  RICH,  Brook- 
lyn  Training  School  for  Teachers. 

This  book  is  for  boys  as  well  as  girls.     It  teaches  the  youngsters  to  make  good  use 
of  their  time,  fingers  and  the  cast-off  materials  of  any  household. 

"  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  MAKE  CANDY."-By  ELIZABETH  &  LOUISE  BACBB. 

Tells  the  best  and  safest  way  to  make  all  sorts  of  candy.    The  little  readers  are 

given  many  valuable  hints  that  will  help  them  in  all  kinds  of  cooking. 
11  WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  CUT  OUT  PICTURES."-By  IDA  E.  BOYD. 

A  book  that  will  be  a  boon  to  mothers  and  children  on  rainy  afternoons.    A  joy  to 

the  convalescent  or  sick  child.    Full  of  clever  idea*. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  KEEP  PETS."-By  CONSTANCE  JOHNSON. 

All  children  love  animals.    This  little  book  teaches  the  child  how  to  care  for  the 
various  kinds  of  pets.   It  is  a  guide  for  dog-loving  boys  and  kitten-loving  girls  alike. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GARDEN." -By  FRANCES  DUNCAN. 
A  popular  handbook  of  simple  gardening  for  beginners  of  all  ages. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  SEW."— By  VIRGINIA  RALSTON  (Mrs.  Ralston). 
A  wonderfully  practical  book  full  of  ideas  that  children  can  easily  carry  out. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  PLAY."-By  ANGELA  M.  KHYES. 

Deals  with  pantomimes,  puppet  shows,  plays,  spinning  tales,  rhyming,  shadow  pic- 
tures, "what  to  say"  games  and  many  other  fascinating  plays. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  HELP.»-By  CONSTANCE  JOHNSON. 

Here  are  hints  for  bed-making,  cleaning  house,  sweeping,  care  of  cut  flowers  and 
house  plants,  notes  on  the  ice  box,  the  wood  box,  the  pot  and  pan  closet,  etc. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  GIVE  A  PARTY."-By  ELSIE  DUNCAN  YALB. 
A  useful  book  for  birthday,  Christmas— in  fact,  for  any  and  every  kind  of  party. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  CARPENTER."-By  JOHN  D.  ADAMS. 

A  book  telling  boys  and  girls  how  to  make  many  attractive  and  useful  articles  with 
faw  tools  and  at  small  expense.    Attractively  illustrated. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  MODEL."-By  H»L*N  MORTIMER  ADAMS. 

A  book  to  teach  children  the  use  of  clay,  giving  directions  for  making  practical 
toys  and  useful  objects  and  graded  suggestions  for  artistic  modelling. 

"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  TELL  STORIES."— By  ENOS  B.  COMBTOCK. 

The  aim  of  this  work  is  to  improve  the  child's  power  of  observation  as  well 

as  bis  method  of  expression. 
"WHEN  MOTHER  LETS  US  DRAW."-By  EMMA  R.  LB«  THAT**. 

Makes  drawing  interesting  and  amusing  to  children.    Develops  the  "seeing "eye 

and  guides  the  little  hand. 

Each  volume  fully  illustrated  Price  75  cento,  n«f,  each 


MOFFAT,  YARD  &  COMPANY  New  York 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


